Always Come Back
by DragonShenron
Summary: Adopted from AMMO121 - Whilst observing abnormal reiastu fluctuations Toshiro is forced to attend Kaibara High, learning that his past is closer than previously thought. Just who are the Sohma family?
1. First Encounters

**DISCLAIMER: I DON'T OWN BLEACH OR FRUITS BASKET, NOR DO I PROFIT FROM THIS STORY!**

**Hello!**

**With permission from ****AMMO121 ****I have adopted their Bleach/ Fruits Basket crossover - 'Always Come Back' which was published back in 2012. So if you want to go and check out the original just go to AMMO121 profile.**

**This is my first Bleach/Fruits Basket crossover and my first fic to do with Fruits Basket at all. I did do one Bleach fic but it was published a few years ago and I'm afraid to go and look at it.**

**The only pairings that will be in here will be the Fruits Basket couples from the manga. For those who haven't read the Manga I won't reveal all the couples because I don't wont spoil it. Though I would suggest reading the manga, it really is fantastic!**

**That means that Toshiro wont be paired with anyone from Bleach or Fruits Basket. I'm actually a HitsuMatsu fan but that's not going to be in here because I know that it isn't everyone's cup of tea, though that doesn't mean that there won't be the general fun times between the two. Well fun for Rangiku, not so much for Toshiro. Also I've always thought that Toshiro thinks of Momo in a sibling sort of love so there wont be any hints between those two. I'm not hating on the pairing, its just as I've always imagined them.**

**It's going to be a Bleach AU just for time line issues.**

**Also, I'm Australian so if some of the spelling is different (in most cases it will be a 'U' in some words) that's the reason.**

**Anyway, I hope you like it.**

**Thank you to AMMO121 for allowing me to adopt this story!**

* * *

_**First Encounters**_

_Mission Status Update._

_Since my arrival seventeen days ago I have yet to encounter the source of the reiatsu disturbance, though there have been numerous instances throughout my time here that it has flared for a moment, only to disappear soon after. _

_These occurrences are followed by another spike in reiatsu before it once again settles. The time in between the two anomalies are not consistent either, as I have recorded that the shortest time was two minutes, while the longest was up to half an hour. _

_I have detected that some of these abnormalities have occurred at Kaibara High, the local High School of this town. I suspect that the source, or sources, of the disturbance either attend the establishment as a faculty member or a student._

_I have been unable to confirm this thus far._

_Please respond with any more orders._

_\- Hitsugaya Taicho_

* * *

Toshiro grunted and tugged at his pullover uncomfortably. It was an unseasonably warm night and it was starting to get to the young Taicho, who was naturally more inclined to cooler weather. Continuing his way down the deserted street Toshiro wished he could just take off the offending extra layer of clothing, but it had been a direct order from the Soutaicho that he remain discreet and not draw any attention to himself. Which led to his current predicament of having to hide his white hair with the hood of his pullover and concealing his green eyes behind a pair of sunglasses during the day.

'_Not like it helped much.'_ Toshiro thought bitterly as he sidestepped a questionable item on the sidewalk. Despite adhering to the Soutaicho's orders Toshiro had still garnered quite a bit of attention since the start of the mission. While the weather had been cooler as of late, it was still odd to see a young boy walking down the street in the middle of the day, with his hood pulled over his head and a pair of sunglasses adorning his face.

If Toshiro had a dollar for every time he heard a whispered 'hooligan' follow him down the street, he would be a very rich man.

At least he could ditch the glasses when the sun went down; his hair however was another story. He'd been told many times that his hair was like a beacon when it was dark, which eventually had him taken off any late night patrol since his hair was a dead giveaway for any hollows in the area. Not that Toshiro was complaining, the free time let him finish off any paper work the Matsumoto had neglected to do during the week, which usually meant all of her paperwork.

Matsumoto had once told him that he was her very own personal 'little night light'. In her defense, she had been very drunk when he found her in the small bar not too far from the Juban Tai head quarters, so much so that he had to literally drag her back to the barracks. When he had finally made it to her quarters, she had said that he made "A very good night light" and that he should feel free to "bring her home" whenever he felt like it. Which he actually ended up having to do quite often, to her immense pleasure.

So in lieu of having his hair provide another light source, the small Taicho was forced to keep his hair hidden under his hood.

"If they were so worried about blending in why the hell did they think it was a good idea to send me?" He muttered petulantly and hunched his shoulders, further voicing his displeasure, only vaguely registering the sound of some other people heading his way. Thinking that were just some teens that had snuck out to cause havoc while their parents slept, Toshiro paid them no heed and sunk deeper into his thoughts as the distance between himself and the group began to lessen.

* * *

"Thank you for coming to meet me, but really it wasn't necessary." Tohru happily addressed the group at large, only a small hint of guilt in her voice. Despite the late hour Tohru had only just gotten of work a few minutes ago, her shift had run into over-time because one of the other cleaners had gone home sick. Tohru only had a few moments to ring home and Shigure of the situation. The author had been quick to assure her that it was fine and that he would send one of the boys to meet her after work so that she wouldn't have to walk home alone.

Expecting either Kyo or Yuki to be waiting for her outside, Tohru had rushed to get changed out of her cleaning uniform so that she wouldn't make them wait any longer than they already had. It had been a surprise to find not only Yuki and Kyo waiting for but Hatsuharu and Momiji as well. The two younger boy's had apparently been visiting when she had called during the middle of her shift.

"It's no trouble Honda-san, we were happy to do it." Yuki sent the girl a small smile, while Momiji nodded eagerly.

"Plus there's been talk about some guy walking around here with his face hidden." Kyo added in his two cents from his position beside Tohru, his arms behind his neck in an act of nonchalance. "You shouldn't be alone while that guy is prowling around here."

"I heard that too!" Momiji moved away from Hatsuharu and took up position in front of Kyo, walking backwards so that he could continue the conversation easily. "But I thought he was just a kid?" The blonde frowned at his red headed cousin, which only deepened when the older boy turned him around, muttering about him causing an accident walking that way.

"It doesn't pay to be too careful. You, of all people Momiji, should know that height doesn't account for anything." Hatsuharu droned from behind the group, finally adding his own thoughts. "It's better to be safe than be sorry." Truthfully the boy didn't think they had anything to worry about if they were to come across the mysterious boy. Yuki, Kyo and himself would easily be able to subdue him if he tried anything, and Momiji would prove to be a sufficient buffer for Tohru since his growth spurt over the break. Frankly Hatsuharu would have preferred to avoid a possible meeting with the boy completely, but when Tohru had called to say that she would be working late and Shigure managed convince Yuki and Kyo that she would most likely run into the unknown boy. That had set the two off, which in turn led Momiji to want to go along and meet Tohru as well, and where Momiji would go Hatsuharu would usually follow.

It was true though. If anyone were to come across the boy it would most likely be Tohru, the kind girl would probably try to befriend him and end up getting taken for a ride. Hatsuharu sighed and ran a hand through his hair, shaking his head when Yuki turned back to look at him, his brow cocked in a curious manner as if he was asking what was wrong.

The older boy kept his eyes locked with the younger teen's for a few more moments before turning away and began conversing with the rest of the group once more. Glad that Yuki hadn't pushed for an answer, the teen returned to his musings, only catching the end of Momiji complaining about being hungry and Tohru promising to make something for him when they got home.

A small smile tugged at the corner of his lips, considering the girl in front of him. While Tohru's kindness has always been one of her most shining qualities and naturally drew people to her, it was also one of her biggest flaws. There had been numerous times where Tohru's willingness to help anyone had been abused by those around her, not that the admittedly dense girl ever realised this, or if she had it was never mentioned. Nevertheless Hanajima-san dealt with these people, whom Hatsuharu believed to be immensely stupid, accordingly. Whatever method she used proved to be affective so far, five minutes alone with the strange girl had scared anyone from ever using Tohru again. They had also picked up a strange habit of calling her 'Mama' whenever they met her in the halls. Hatsharu believed it best to not think about that particular outcome very often.

"Hey look Tohru, there's a vending machine over there! Do you want to get some food with me?" Broken from his thoughts, Hatsuharu came to stop behind the group who had halted when Momiji had voiced his observation and in his excitement almost bumped into Tohru. Hatsuharu could see that the small boy was pointing across the street at the colorful machine.

Kyo growled and pulled the energetic teen back. "Idiot! Do you want to transform right here? Calm the hell down."

Momiji, who was still being held by the collar of his clothes, pouted and crossed his arms. If he was still the same height he had been a half a year ago the look would have appeared cute, but alas it now only served to make him seem childish. Though with Momiji that could have been his goal in the first place. "But I'm hungry Kyo!" He stomped his foot, as if that act alone would convince the orange haired boy.

It didn't work and only made Kyo tighten his grip before he began chewing out the younger boy. Yuki sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose, embarrassed by the behaviour of the two. "Morons." Whenever Kyo and Momiji were in the same vicinity it never failed to end in an argument, leaving everyone with a headache by the end of it. It was same with Hatsuharu and Hiro, the common denominator between the two boys being Kyo.

"Besides, if we get some food from the vending machine it would save Tohru from having to make something when we get back." Momiji smirked at Kyo. "Or do you want Tohru to stay up even later to make us something to eat?"

"W-what? I never said tha-"

"He makes a good point." Yuki interrupted Kyo's indignant sputtering. "It's late and we still have School tomorrow."

"It's okay Kyo-kun." Tohru said as she began to make her way towards the vending machine. "I'll just pop over and get a few things, it's no bother." She smiled at them over her shoulder, one leg already over the chain divider.

"Wait Honda-san let us give you-" But Tohru was already over the divider and looking both ways of course began making her way towards the machine. Yuki sighed, realising that the girl wasn't going to let them pay for any of the food. Sometimes Yuki wished that she wasn't so selfless and would let others help her.

"Now look what you did!" Kyo cuffed Momiji on the back of the head, causing the blonde to let out a pathetic whimper.

"It's not like I asked her to buy it for me! I would have paid."

"So now you're blaming Tohru?"

"Calm down you stupid cat."

"No one asked you, you damn rat!"

Hatsuharu, who chose to stay out of the ensuing argument, instead kept his eyes steady on Tohru, not wanting to let her out of his sight. The girl was collecting the food goods, judging from the shape Hatsuharu would say they were chips, hugging them to her body. For a moment the boy thought it odd that she would that particular item of food, as Tohru tended to lean towards more nutrient rich foods, and chips definitely weren't on the list.

"What do you think Haru?" Jarred from his thoughts said boy removed his gaze from Tohru, who was now making her way back towards them, and turned to Momiji. The look on his face clearly said that he was waiting for an answer, though Hatsuharu had no idea what the boy was talking about and from the looks he was getting from both Yuki and Kyo told him that they were also waiting.

Just as Hatsuharu was about to ask them what they were talking about, a car came screeching around the corner, exceeding the speed limit by a considerable margin. The smell of burning rubber hit the boy's full force, as the car seemed to teeter for a few moments before continuing on its course, which happened to be where Tohru was at that exact moment.

To Tohru it was as if time had slowed down to a gut-wrenching crawl. The cries of her friends, telling her to run and the beeping of the speeding car scarcely registered with her as her mind drifted away. Is this what it felt like for her? For her mother when she was struck down barely two years ago? Had she been in this exact same situation, knowing that she was going to be hit and there was no way of stopping it? Maybe it differed with every person, for some it would go by sickeningly quick, barely time to process what was happening. Others could experience like she was, having what felt like all the time in the world, but really you had mere seconds, and that was if you were lucky.

The car was getting closer, the headlights bolder and brighter, and she felt a sudden chill against her skin, probably caused by her own panicked mind, she theorized. Her gaze was locked onto the hurtling piece of metal, she refused to look at the boys, though from her peripheral she could see them trying to make it to her in time. If she were to die right now, and Tohru knew that her chances of surviving this was slim a best, she didn't want the boys to see the look on her face. The shock, fear and maybe just a little bit of acceptance at was about to occur.

She shut her eyes, the lights so close now that they were blinding her, and braced for the inevitable collision, the heat of the engine already hot on her skin.

However, all she felt was another body slamming into hers, forcing her out of the cars destructive path. Only briefly aware that she was now airborne, and that the chips she was holding a moment before were now scattered around her. Tohru felt a pair of small arms wrap around her stomach from behind, shielding her from the an uncomfortable impact with the hard road. Not that it didn't stop the air from being knocked from her lungs, nor did it stop the dull ache she felt in her lower back. Although when it came to the alternative, Tohru could live with a little back pain.

In her dizzied state Tohru could hear the obnoxious beeping of the car grow faint as it drove away, not caring that it had nearly run down a teenage girl, until the only sound Tohru could hear was her own laboured breathing. She squeezed her eyes shut, hoping in vain that it would stop the world from spinning and help her regain her bearings.

What just happened?

* * *

That hurt.

That _really_ hurt.

Admittedly, it wasn't as bad as getting run through with a Zanpakuto, but pain was pain and Toshiro was in it right now. He cursed and shifted uncomfortably underneath the human girl, who was about to be run over by a speeding car. After pushing her out of the way of the vehicle, Toshiro had managed to manoeuvre himself underneath her so that he would take the force of the fall. Unfortunately this also resulted in a painful blow to the head; even now Toshiro could feel a small amount of blood coating the back of his head and a small portion of his neck. _'Damn gigai, why does Urahara have to make them so fragile?' _He detached his arms from around the girl's waist and rubbed his forehead_, _wishing that it would ward off his incoming headache, though he knew it was a futile attempt.

Toshiro guessed that the girl was trying to deal with sudden case of vertigo; he was having some trouble himself, as she had yet to remove herself from his person. Letting a sigh pass his lips, Toshiro gently pushed on her shoulder. "I know that you just had this near death experience and all, but would you mind getting off me?"

The sound she made was somewhere between a squeak and a shriek, Toshiro probably would have found the noise amusing if he wasn't in the position he was right now. The girl scrambled off him, hastily apologising as she did so, and he had to suppress another groan as his back erupted in pain. '_Add that to my list of injuries.' _

Toshiro slowly pushed himself up into a sitting position to see that the girl was now surrounded by a group of boys, each of them fretting over her in their own way, though he noticed that none of them held her. He brushed off the odd observation as some quirk of theirs, and eased himself to his feet, once again cursing the gigai.

"Tohru! Are you okay?" So that was her name. Toshiro tucked away the little bit of information, no doubt he would have to inform the Soutaicho of this incident. After all he had ignored his orders to remain as discreet as possible, though he suspected he wouldn't get into too much trouble. With that thought in mind he pulled the hood of sweatshirt up over his head again, it had fallen down in all the commotion, and pulled out his phone, jotting down a few notes for later use.

"Y-yes, I'm fine, Momiji-kun." She assured him, allowing the blonde haired boy to help her to her feet. She gave them a wobbly smile, still a little bit shaken up despite what she said. "Just a little bit sore."

"Honestly, I'm alright." Toshiro heard Tohru once again reassuring the group of boys. "It would have been much worse if it hadn't been for him." She said, finally turning away from the boys and facing him. Her eyes widened for a few seconds, taking in his form. Obviously he had not been what she was expecting, if her expression was anything to go by. The teens behind her also looked just as shocked, if not a little bit defensive. The orange headed boy took a step closer to Tohru, the grey haired boy not far behind and Toshiro had to squash the overwhelming urge to laugh at the action. What point would there be to harm the girl who he had just saved from getting run over? It was illogical.

Tohru, ignoring the two behind her bowed deeply, disregarding the small twinge of pain that shot up her spine. "Thank you very much for saving me. I'm indebted to you." She held her position for a little while longer before righting herself, a radiant smile on her face. Momiji and the black and white haired teen followed her lead, bowing to the young boy. However the other two remained upright, watching him in an almost wary manner.

Toshiro regarded Tohru for a few moments before he shook his head and returned his attention to his phone. "Don't worry about it." After a final couple of clicks he flipped it shut with a snap and pocketed the item. He turned away from the group, intent on heading back to his apartment to retire for the night and hopefully sleep off his headache.

"W-wait!" The sudden urgent shout from the girl stopped Toshiro in his tracks. He looked over his shoulder at her, noticing that she was closer than she was mere seconds ago, her arm outstretched as if she was about to touch his shoulder. "You must be hurt, please let me help you. I may not be a qualified nurse, or know how to take care of serious injuries…" she trailed off as if she pondering something. "On second thought we should take you to the hospital! You could be bleeding internally or-"

'_So she's a rambler.' _Luckily Toshiro was particularly adept at dealing with ramblers, growing up with Momo and having Rangiku as your Fukutaicho would do that to you. Momo's rambling typically came from being embarrassed or her trying to be overly helpful, which seemed to be Tohru's case, while Rangiku's predictably reared its head when she was drunk. Since becoming the Taicho of the Jubantai Toshiro had become fluent in what Rangiku affectionately called 'drunk speech'.

Tohsiro wasn't sure if he should be proud or disturbed for possessing such a talent.

"-gency rom and-"

"It's alright." Toshiro cut through smoothly. He had a feeling that if hadn't of cut her off then she would have passed out. Had she even taken a breath? From the colour of her face Toshiro would have to say that she hadn't. "Nothing a good nights rest wont fix." That was a lie; he doubted that he wouldn't be able to get away without stitching up the back of his head. It would be tricky to do by himself but it wasn't the first time he had done so. Like many other Shinigami he was reluctant to admit when he needed medical attention, unless it was blatantly obvious. Mostly it was because he wanted to avoid Unohana, that creepy smile of hers could make Zaraki shake in his tabi.

"Are you sure? You got hurt because I was careless-" Was she serious? He just said he fine! Toshiro could have groaned when he realised that she was a mix of both Momo and Inoue, the overly helpful to the point of exhaustion type. His headache was growing in intensity and the constant yammering of the girl behind him wasn't doing it any favours.

"I said I was fine!" That came out harsher than what he intended, and immediately regretted his tone when she flinched away from him, obviously not expecting his harsh tone either. He sighed and turned to face her fully, "Look, I didn't-"

"What the hell is your problem?" There certainly were a lot of people being interrupted tonight. The orange haired teen from before stalked up to him, anger written clearly on his face, the boys behind him didn't appear to happy with his tone either. "All she wants to do is help you!" The teen fisted the front of his pullover, forcing Toshiro onto the balls of his feet.

"Kyo-kun, stop it!" Tohru said desperately. "I shouldn't have pushed, he said that he was fine." Tears gathered in her brown eyes. "Please stop it." By this time the other three teens had come forward and were also trying to calm down the angry red head.

"Quit being an idiot Kyo!" Momiji chided the older boy before turning to the grey haired teen. "Do something Yuki!"

"This is pointless and you're embarrassing yourself." Toshiro thought that their methods of quelling Kyo's anger were quite weak. Yuki was especially atrocious if the words he just said were any indication.

"Cut the kid some slack, he did just save Honda-sans life after all."

"No one asked you Hatsuharu! That doesn't give him the right to talk to Tohru that way." The boy, Toshiro now knew to be Kyo, kept his heated gaze on Toshiro. "What do you to say for yourself? Apologise to her!"

Toshiro rolled his eyes, the action masked by his hood. "Before you _rudely_ interrupted me," he said in the bored tone he was known for. "That was what I was trying to do."

"Don't try that act on me! I've heard about you. You're the kid that's been stalking the streets lately." So that's why they were being so defensive? They think he's some sort of weird stalker, out on his nightly prowl? That sounded like something that fool Kurosaki and his band of morons would come up with. He rolled his eyes again, his mind already making parallels between this new group of teens and the Karakura faction.

He really hoped that the two groups wouldn't have a chance to meet.

"Are you even listening to me?" Evidently not, since Toshiro had no idea what the teen had been prattling on about for the last minute or so. Ignoring the question completely, Toshiro brought his hand up and pulled Kyo's hand away from his pullover with ease, much to the surprise of the other male, before turning to the sole female of the group. The tears in her eyes that had been present earlier on were now gone and her stance had relaxed some since Kyo had grabbed him only a few minutes ago.

"I apologise for my earlier tone, it was uncalled for." He inclined his head in a small bow.

"Oh no, you don't have to apologise! I understand." Tohru smiled at him, her eyes closing for a moment before opening again, Toshiro noted that she looked a little embarrassed. "I'm Honda Tohru, with all the commotion I forgot to introduce myself earlier." She bowed, not as deeply as before but still a respectful amount.

"Hitsugaya Toshiro." He copied her action, the manner that Granny had taught him decades ago kicking in. He is a gentleman after all.

The sharp intake of breath from the group at large surprised the two, and not a second later Toshiro felt himself jerked up from his bow by the hood of his pullover, before he felt the blue material slip away from his head completely, revealing his white hair and green eyes for all of them to see. Tohsiro cursed himself for allowing someone to get behind him so easily and ran a hand through his hair, there was no point in hiding it now. Closing his eyes, the Taicho counted to ten, employing the old technique that Ukitake had taught him when he was first instated.

When her opened his eyes Toshiro was met with one pair of curious brown eyes, he was a little put out that Tohru was staring at him so intently. It had been awhile since someone had openly stared at him, the shinigami had long since gotten used to appearance and the new recruits wouldn't dare look at a Taicho in such a manner.

The boys however were staring at him with a mixture of shock and sadness. The first emotion was expected, he had grown used to seeing such a look when he was growing up in Junrinan. The sad look was a surprise, he hadn't seen a look directed at him like that since he left Granny behind to attend the Shino Academy. He cocked one thin white brow at the boys, wondering why such an emotion would be present in the first place. Toshiro saw Momiji lean over to whisper something to Yuki, the older teen nodding along with whatever the blonde was saying.

"Your hair, it's white." Hatsuharu sounded from behind him, his hand still curled tightly around hood of the shorter male. It had been a mere whisper but all of them had managed to catch it.

"Well spotted." He grumbled. "You don't have much room to talk though." He stuffed his hands into his pockets and put a few feet of distance between them, the hood of pullover easily falling from Hatsuharu's weak grip.

"No, I guess I don't." Came Hatsuharu's quiet reply, his arm falling limp at his side.

Disregarding the fact that an awkward silence had settled over the group, Toshiro busied himself with his phone, hoping that it would give him an excuse to leave the vicinity as quickly as possible.

As luck would have it he had received a message only a few minutes ago, most likely detailing new orders from the Soutaicho. When you first entered the Shino Academy one of the first things you were taught was that if the Ichiban-Tai symbol were to appear on a document or message it was something of extreme importance. Such a symbol was blinking happily next to his new mission details.

Once again pocketing his phone Toshiro addressed the assembled teens, who had managed to pull themselves into a semblance of normality. Hatsuharu had made his way over to Kyo, the two sharing a whispered conversation like Yuki and Momiji had not a moment before. "I have to be going now, it's getting late." He bowed to the group and turned on his heel, happy to finally put the night to a rest.

"Wait!" Toshiro sighed, and turned around impatiently waiting for Yuki to continue. "If you don't mind me asking, why did you save Honda-san? Not that we aren't grateful that you did," He kept his curious, but wary gaze on Toshiro. "But you don't know Honda-san, there was no reason for saving her like you did."

"I was under the assumption that one didn't need a reason to save a life, or am I mistaken?" Came his immediate response, a definite note of sarcasm lacing his words. Toshiro turned away from the group, clearly not interested in what the teen would say in reply and moved in the direction of his apartment, throwing a careless farewell over his shoulder when Tohru wished him a hurried good night

* * *

"Goodness! You really have had an eventful night." Shigure was positively enthralled by the night's events. "You say that the boy who saved you is the same boy that the locals have been speaking of recently?" A wry grin spread across his features. "Talk about never judging a book by its cover." He chuckled, the sound almost deafening in the quiet living room. The boys had been curiously quiet since they had returned, none of them contributing to Tohru's story of the boy who had saved her.

Shigure shrugged it off, thinking that the boys were shaken up by Tohru's near miss tonight.

How wrong he was.

"That's not all! He had white hair, for a moment I thought that maybe he was a Sohma but then I remembered that Kyo-kun and the others didn't know him-" Shigure nodded in agreement. The only Sohma with white hair was Hatsuharu and to some extent, Ayame, but his was more of silver than a white. "- and he had the greenest eyes I'd ever seen! It was like they were glowing they were so bright."

Shigure blinked.

Wait.

White hair and green eyes?

There was no way…

"Excuse me Tohru," he held up a hand to silence the girl, an apologetic smile on his face so that he wouldn't appear rude. "Would you say that he was short in stature?"

Tohru, not at all put out by the question, answered him eagerly. "He was quite small." She tapped her finger to her chin. "I would say he was about the same size Momiji was when I first met him. Why do you ask?"

Shigure felt his heart skip a beat and he had to suppress shudder that threatened to overwhelm his body.

"Oh nothing," he answered a little too quickly. "Just wanted to get a few facts straight, you know how people can exaggerate. I heard from one woman that he was over six feet tall." Shigure let a chuckle pass his lips, Tohru's own melodic laughter joining his not a second later.

'_This cannot be happening.'_

* * *

_Hitsugaya Taicho_

_In light of your recent observations, it has been decided that you will focus your attention on Kaibara High. _

_You will attend the School as a Third year student in class 3-A. Urahara Kisuke has taken the liberty to create a student profile, stating that you are transferring out of Karakura High to attend Kaibara Hig at the request of your family. You will first day will be the start of next week._

_You will be expected to send weekly updates of your progress on ascertaining the source of the disturbances._

_\- Yamamoto Soutaicho_

Damnit.

* * *

**First chapter finished!**

**Reiatsu – Spiritual energy**

**Jubantai – Tenth division**

**Taicho – Captain**

**Fukutaicho – Lieutenant**

**Ichiban-tai – First division **

**Shino Academy – the academy that souls with high reiatsu attend to become shinigami.**

**I just want to clarify that I do not endorse any sort of violence or bullying behaviour. That part with Hana dealing with the people who take advantage of Tohru was merely to show how deeply they care for Tohru. There will not be any bullying behaviour (besides Akito) and the only violence will come from Toshiro with the hollows and once again Akito.**

**Also that part about Hana being called 'Mama' is joke about a chapter in the Manga series – its not just some weird kink thing that I made up. **

**Likewise with the appearances of the characters is going to be how it is the manga. Mainly it will be the hair and eyes colour, such as Kyo having red eyes in the anime while he has orange eyes in the manga, it's the same with Hatsuharu, he has brownish-grey eyes in the anime, but in the manga they're just brown.**

**I hope you liked it.**

**(By the way I'm not one of those others that hold their story to ransom for reviews so you don't have to worry about that.)**

**R and R**

**DragonShenron**


	2. First Day

**DISCLAIMER: I DON'T OWN FRUITS BASKET OR BLEACH NOR DO I PROFIT FROM THIS STORY!**

**Thank you to every one who reviewed, followed or put this on their favourite's list! It is most appreciated!**

**Sorry that it's taken me this long to update. The semester is ending soon so UNI has been my priority for the past few weeks, especially within exams looming.**

**As I said in the previous chapter the timeline for Bleach is going to be majorly different so that it fits in line with this story, think of it as an AU timeline. It actually goes against my own head cannon for the Bleach timeline where it concerns Toshiro, but I'm going to try and make it work. **

**Also, Toshiro will most likely appear to some that he is out of character, but its my belief that Toshiro does have a fun side that only a select group of people can bring out of him, like Rangiku. I think it would be more on the sarcastic side of humour, with room for a few pranks on the side (That could never be traced back to him, if he put his mind to it).**

* * *

_Previously…_

_Hitsugaya Taicho_

_In light of your recent observations, it has been decided that you will focus your attention on Kaibara High._

_You will attend the School as a Third year student in class 3-A. Urahara Kisuke has taken the liberty to create a student profile, stating that you are transferring out of Karakura High to attend Kaibara High at the request of your family. Your first day will be the start of next week._

_You will be expected to send weekly updates of your progress on ascertaining the source of the disturbances._

_\- Yamamoto Soutaicho_

Damnit.

* * *

_**First Day**_

_Hitsugaya Taicho,_

_I advise you to keep your distance from these children you mentioned in the last report, it may prove to be problematic if you were to spend too much time with them._

_That being said, you will not be punished for your actions that resulted in meeting them. The safety of every soul is paramount, even if it means preventing a possible death. As such we will be looking at this incident as you acting within your duties as a Taicho of the Gotei Thirteen._

_Report anything that you find to be of value._

_\- Yamamoto Soutaicho_

* * *

Four days later Toshiro found himself lingering in an empty hall of Kaibara High, waiting for his homeroom teacher, Mayuko Shiraki, to settle the class down so that she could introduce him. He had met the kind, if not a tad aggressive, woman when he had an introductory meeting with the principal of the School. She had looked him over for a few seconds, taking in his unusual hair and eye colour, before shrugging and saying that as long as he didn't cause too much trouble they should be okay. It had been general meeting, telling Toshiro what was expected of him, both academically and socially, while also giving Toshiro the opportunity to ask questions about anything he was uncertain about. The principal wasn't impressed when the only question put forward was about when the meeting would finally end.

Toshiro didn't particularly care about impressing the man; his top priority was finding the source of the reiastu disturbance so that he could finally return to the Seireitei. He shuddered to think about how his division must be behaving under Rangiku's command, that woman was so persuasive that she could make even the most straight-laced Shinigami go along with her schemes, no matter how outlandish. That particular talent had him in the first division more often then he would have liked, the Soutaicho had actually taken it upon himself to schedule a permanent weekly meeting with Toshiro and Rangiku just to save time. While this more embarrassing than he cared to admit, Toshiro actually found himself looking forward to the meetings, a feeling he knew Rangiku shared. In their last meeting the Soutaicho had turned the most interesting shade of puce the duo had ever seen.

"Hitsugaya-san," Toshiro looked up from his phone, which he had been absentmindedly fiddling with, to see that Mayuko had come out of the classroom, she must have finished the introductions for the morning. "I've informed the class of your transfer, so when I call for you just open the door and come in. They're pretty rowdy but they're good kids, I'm sure you'll be just fine."

Toshiro sincerely doubted that.

* * *

"Are you sure your alright Tohru?"

"I'm fine Uo-chan" Tohru once again reassured her friend. The news of Tohru's near miss a few nights again had spread like wild fire, prompting many fellow students to ask how she was. Though there are some who would readily take advantage of the girl and her kind nature, the majority of the student body liked Tohru and felt a need to protect the slightly oblivious girl. "Really everyone," She addressed the rest of her classmates crowded around her desk "I'm fine. There's no need to worry."

The group grumbled but didn't make a move to return to their seats, which they had vacated as soon as Mayuko left to get the new transfer student. Uo kept her eyes trained on Tohru for a few minutes before sighing. "If you say so, but it was lucky that this Hitsugaya guy was around when he was, he must be a pretty cool guy if was willing to put his life on the line for a complete stranger."

The assembled group once again voiced their agreement.

"Alright you guys, settle down." Mayuko called as she came back into the room, immediately ushering the students back into their seats, much to Tohru's delight. "As I said before we have a new student joining us today, so I would like you to give him a warm welcome." She smiled at the class before turning to the door. "Hitsugaya-san, you may come in now."

"You've got to be kidding me." Kyo sat up straighter in his chair, vaguely noticing that both Yuki and Tohru were doing the same thing.

Toshiro cocked his brow not at all surprised by the actions of his soon to be fellow students. Most of them were staring at him, their eyes wide as they took in his unusual appearance; others were straining their necks to see him, almost climbing over each other in their enthusiasm.

'_Okay, now that's a new one_.'

Pushing that thought to the back of his mind, Toshiro continued his inspection of the group of teens and let an inaudible groan escape his lips when his gaze landed on a shock of orange hair. The only people that Toshiro knew had that alarming shade of orange were Kurosaki Ichigo and Sohma Kyo. The prospect of either teen being in this particular class was equally horrifying. Knowing his luck the rest of the group that he had met a few days ago would also be in this class. Tearing his eyes away Kyo, who remained oblivious to his gaze, Toshiro spied out the grey hair of Sohma Yuki and Honda Tohru, who managed to blend in more with her brown hair. He was glad to see that the other two Sohma teens were nowhere in sight.

'_Just my luck, I managed to be in the same class with the three of the people that the Soutaicho warned me to stay away from. This is going to be fun to explain to him.' _

"I'm Hitsugaya Toshiro, it's nice too meet you all." Toshiro bowed politely to the class, unknowingly making him appear even smaller to the teenagers.

"You can take the free seat behind Uotani-san," Mayuko addressed Toshiro as he righted himself from his bow. "Uotani-san please raise your hand."

"Right here." Uo raised her hand in a lazy wave, head resting comfortably in her hand. She gave a courtesy nod as Toshiro passed her desk.

"Alright class, now that everything is taken care of can you please open your text books to page-"

Toshiro tuned out the rest of what Mayuko said, he had already learnt every thing he needed to know about the world at the academy and was even forced to attend more classes whenever new information was obtained. Deciding that his time was better spent looking out the window Toshiro did just that, dutifully ignoring the stares that he was garnering for blatantly ignoring the lesson.

He had received the same attention when he had first entered the academy; his white hair and emerald eyes immediately drawing unwanted attention. To begin with many avoided him, the same way that the people of Junrinan would scuttle away whenever he came in sight. After some time those same people began to treat him with contempt and openly criticise everything he did. He put it down to how quickly he progressed with his studies, easily finishing over a years worth of material in the time it took them to complete a single term. His instructors labelled him a prodigy within his first few weeks and, much to Toshiro's dismay, he has been stuck with the title since.

Toshiro relaxed in his seat as each student eventually grew bored of their own gawking and returned their attention to the lesson, though the occasional student would glance at him from the corner of their eyes. _'These kids really don't know how to be subtle.' _He huffed as yet another student turned to look at him, this one actually turning in his seat, hiding the act in a badly disguised yawn. Toshiro was quick to dismiss the thought that the student would probably get on remarkably well with Madarame.

Meanwhile, Kyo was fretting in his seat. His leg was bouncing up and down, refusing to cooperate with his attempt to stop it. If he did manage to stop it for a few seconds it would just start up again, often without him noticing until he gained a disgruntled look for the person beside him. He couldn't help it though, he had been on edge ever since Toshiro had entered the rom, and it was as if the guy could set his nerves on fire with his mere presence, a stark contrast to the cool aura that the white haired teen seemed to naturally exude.

He groaned. Why did he have to be in this class? Scratch that, why did he have to be in this School? It would have been much easier if their meeting turned out to be a onetime occurrence, but no! The universe must have had it out for him.

He laid his head down on the desk and let his mind travel back to a few nights ago, back to the conversation he shared with Shigure.

"_I'm telling you Shigure, he looked exactly like him!"_

"_How can you be sure Kyo? You've never met him, hell I wasn't even born."_

"_But we've all seen photos!" Kyo slammed his hand on the kotatsu, his voice breaking as his anger got the better of him. "There isn't a Sohma who hasn't seen pictures or heard stories about him! I know that it's him."_

_Shigure sighed and rubbed his eyes; the late hour was getting to him. "We can't jump to conclusions, it could just be a coincidence."_

"_Yeah, I bet there are a ton of white haired, green eyed teenagers called Hitsugaya Toshiro running around." _

_A tense silence filled the room, settling over the occupants quickly. Tohru had left for bed over an hour ago, leaving the five Sohma men to themselves in the living room. As soon as they were sure Tohru wouldn't be able to hear them the remaining teens told their side of the story, eventually leading to the argument between Shigure and kyo._

"_We should talk to Kazuma." Hatsuharu spoke up from his position beside the window. "He would have a better indication of what's happening and could confirm if our suspicions are right or not."_

"_A splendid idea Haru! However, I think you should only do this if you come into contact with him again, there is no sense in causing a commotion for something that could be a one time thing." Shigure rose from the Kotta's, a smile spreading across his face. "Kazuma is our best bet at finding out what's going on. But for now, you should all head to bed, its much too late for Momiji and Hatsuharu to be going back to the estate, so ill make up some futons for you down here." _

_And with that the conversation came to an abrupt end._

Kyo grunted, hearing another coming from Yuki's seat. The rat was probably thinking along the same lines as him. Yep, the universe was definitely out to get him, and that damn rat.

* * *

The bell had barely finished ringing before his classmates surrounded Toshiro's desk, not unlike Tohru was that morning. The Sohma's were at the front of the large group, along with Tohru, Uo and another girl that Toshiro couldn't put a name to.

"Can I help you?"

Uo, who had merely turned in her seat to talk to him, spoke first. "We heard about what you did for Tohru a couple of nights ago. That was pretty cool of you."

"Yes, it was quite the heroic deed." The yet to be named girl chimed in. Her voice was light but held an air of authority, almost like Unohana but Toshiro would say that she would have to work for many decades to achieve the same of level of passive aggressiveness that the Yonbantai Taicho possessed. He was drawing an alarming amount of parallels between this town and his fellow Shinigami.

"I'm sure anyone else would have done the same thing." He shrugged not really caring the praise he was receiving.

"That's not true, there are a lot of people that would have just stood there and watched it happen." One student protested from behind Tohru, their face hidden in the sea of students.

"That's right!" Another student piped up. "You see stuff like that on the news all the time. Somebody gets in an accident and nobody tries to help or potentially stop it from happening. They all just let it happen."

"Yeah, it's not like in the movies, where a bunch of people help out."

Tohru, who remained silent as more and more students began to voice their opinions, started toying the cuffs of he shirt. Is that what happened to her mum when she had her accident? Could her death have been preventable if there had been someone like Toshiro around? She shook her head, no, she couldn't think like that. What happened was a tragedy and nothing could change that for all parties involved. The driver of the car had also died at the scene, it turned out that he had been speeding because he was away on a business trip when his pregnant wife had gone into labour, he was trying to get to the hospital in time so that he could be there for the birth. After he had run down Kyoko his car skidded and wrapped itself around a traffic light. He died instantly. Later on, the news anchors ribbed that it was an ironic end.

Tohru thought that the joke was tasteless.

"Can you really blame them?" Toshiro's voice shocked Tohru out of her thoughts and caused the students to fall silent. Toshiro continued after a moment. "The first instinct that a human has is self preservation, it why we build weapons to defend our selves and why we build walls to keep others out. When we get caught doing something we shouldn't be doing our immediate reaction is to lie about it, even when you've been caught red handed you lie because somehow it seems that you'll still get away with it. So it's not surprising that most people would think of themselves before others when faced with the kind of situation where you could die if you interfered. Hell, it's expected. Anybody who acts outside that norm would be often be called reckless for putting themselves at such risk."

"Those people are heroes though!" A girl called out from beside Yuki, she looked put out.

"Yes, wouldn't putting the safety of someone else above your own be considered brave?" Yuki ignored the adoring looks he got from his fan club as he said this, not at all interested in their antics today, or any other day for that matter.

"But aren't most heroic acts fuelled by a reckless desire to prove something to oneself or to someone else? I know a guy that would do anything to keep the people he cares about safe and has done just that, but he is probably one of the most rash people you will ever meet, and he can remarkably stupid sometimes."

"So are you calling yourself stupid? You did save Tohru's life after all." Uo asked, as her interest peeked the longer the conversation went on.

"I'm not calling myself anything, be it a hero or an idiot. I am merely saying that one shouldn't be judged by something that do, or fail to do in the heat of the moment. One moment in a persons life does not account for the rest of their life or the life they lived before the moment." Toshiro stood up from his chair, fishing his phone from his pocket as he did so. He didn't spare a thought to how quiet the class had become since he finished speaking. Hopefully this would deter them from trying to converse with him in the future. "Now if you'll excuse me." He said as he departed from the classroom, leaving a heavy silence in his wake.

* * *

School, Toshiro decided, was one of the biggest wastes of time he had ever had the displeasure of experiencing. He hadn't paid any attention at all to the morning lessons, though Toshiro doubted anyone truly pays attention in a maths lesson. He had been mildly hopeful that science would at least hold his interest, but try as he might, he just couldn't bring himself to care about the life cycle of a dandelion.

The rest of the day wasn't any better. Toshiro had hoped that he would be left alone after he talked to his classmates during the lunch break, but his hopes were dashed when as soon as he returned his classmates accosted him at every turn.

"_Come sit with us Toshiro-kun!"_

"_Want to eat lunch with us tomorrow Toshiro-kun?"_

"_Do you need someone to show you around Toshiro-kun? I'm available!"_

When the final bell rang, Toshiro couldn't get out of the building fast enough, and if he tried to he would have been using shunpo. The audacity of children now days astounded him. Kurosaki calling him by his given name was one thing but an entire student body? That was too much. _'This mission is just keeps getting worse and worse.'_

The shrill ring of his phone jostled him from his thoughts and immediately set him on edge. The phone only ever made that obnoxious sound when a hollow was near by. He ignored the disgruntled looks he received as he stopped in the middle of the sidewalk and quickly retrieved his phone.

_A low class hollow has been detected in you area, minimal force is required._

_Location: One thousand meters northeast._

Perfect, this is exactly what he needs right now, a stupid hollow on the loose.

Toshiro slipped into a nearby alley, only stopping when he was hidden from sight behind a dumpster. Usually he would avoid using such filthy places to use his gikon, but at this time of day and with the amount of people on the street, he didn't have much choice. He quickly slipped the gikongan into his mouth and immediately found himself ejected from his gigai, the artificial soul effectively taking command of the fake body. Most Shinigami chose to use Chappy as their gikon while on missions in the world of the living, but it was much too cutesy for his liking. Instead Toshiro preferred to use King, though it is the least popular variety of gikon, King is very diligent. The only draw back with King is that he is, simply put, rather stupid.

"Stay out of sight. Do not leave this alley." Toshiro commanded his gigai, before leaving in a fast shunpo, not waiting for King to respond. He would do as he told, he always did.

Toshiro scoffed as he found the hollow not a minute later. It was on the larger side, but not so big that it could be seen at a distance, and its white mask somewhat resembled a bull. The hollow was taking slow, shaky, steps as it tried to round the corner, not even acknowledging Toshiro's presence.

'_Must be new.'_ Toshiro thought as he followed the hollow, curious as to know where it was headed. He didn't see any harm in allowing the hollow to wander for a bit longer, they were in the back streets so there were far less people around compared to where Toshiro had just come from. After a few minutes Toshiro noticed that the hollow was coming up behind a group of teens, and he groaned when he recognised the annoying shade of orange.

'_Did I do something in a previous life? Because this is getting ridiculous.' _It was rare for a hollow to attack the living but it wasn't unheard of. In those cases it was usually a departed family member who had been turned into a hollow and began attacking the people they left behind. Toshiro was once again jarred out of his thoughts when the hollow suddenly stopped; its large feet shook the ground slightly, and opened its mouth, an eerie red light beginning to form.

Toshiro frowned and shot forward, immediately zipping around the hollow so that he was face to face with it. He put his hand under the chin of the mask and snapped in shut, the hollow letting out a wail as he did so. "Sorry, can't have you killing the living." Toshiro told the hollow as it stumbled back. "You understand." With he released Hyourinmau from his sheath and with a decisive swing the hollows mask split, and was no more.

He glanced over his shoulder, it looked as if the group hadn't seen anything, and they were still heading in the same direction, their voices loud and obnoxious as always. He hand through his white locks. That hollow was definitely drawn to the group; it had avoided several major streets in favour of finding this particular group of teens.

Toshiro sighed, looked like he had more things to report to the Soutaicho than he wanted to.

Fantastic.

* * *

"Hitsugaya-san really does seem nice, don't you think?" Tohru asked happily. Not at all aware of the danger she or her friends had just been in. The school day had just ended and Shigure had given permission for Uo and Hana to have dinner with them tonight, along with Momiji and Haru,

'_Yeah, to you maybe.' _Kyo thought stubbornly, he was a too stand offish for his liking. When he had told Uo this, the teen had laughed right in his face and had been unable to catch her breath for a good five minutes. He failed to see what was so funny about it.

"He isn't afraid to state his opinions that's for sure." Uo didn't mind that quality in a person she actually admired the trait.

"Haru and I heard about that! He is becoming quite infamous around School isn't he?" Momiji laughed, Tohru joining in not a second later.

"Yes, I enjoyed his company as well." Hana commented softly, she was walking next to Yuki and in front of a silent Haru.

"Oh? He must have some good electric waves then huh?"

Hana frowned, drawing the attention of the group. "Is something wrong Hana?" The concern was evident in Tohru's voice.

"It's odd, but his electric waves are quite different for what I would expect from someone like him."

"Odd?"

The reserved girl nodded. "Yes, they seemed to be far more mature than what they what they should be at this age. It not uncommon to find someone who is more mature than others, but his felt a bit extreme."

"Could it just be coincidence?" Kyo cringed at using the words that Shigure had thrown in face only a few nights ago. Despite what he said back then, he didn't really want to think that he was right, the possibility that he might be is too disturbing. The situation was confusing enough without Hana adding fuel to the fire. "Maybe he's been through more than somebody should and it made him mature quicker."

"I agree," Yuki really hated it when he agreed with that stupid cat, but it couldn't be help, "I doubt he had a fun childhood looking as he does. Not that I have a problem with it." he was quick to add.

Hana nodded, she had moved to the front of the group by now. "Sometimes that is the case, however" she stopped in her tracks, causing the group to stop with her, "That doesn't explain why I felt _two_ sets of electric waves coming from him."

* * *

_Mission status update._

_I have successfully entered the School as a student, and have become acquainted with the teaching staff that I have come into contact with. _

_My apologies Soutaicho, but it would seem that I will be unable to follow your orders. Avoiding the teens from before will prove to difficult, as I have been placed in a class with three of them. It would also seem that the incident from a few nights ago is common knowledge among the students as well, they have been coming to thank me all day and seem quite adamant about befriending me._

_There was a hollow attack today, a low class, and no damage was done to any structures nor were any civilians injured. However it appeared as if the hollow was attracted to the same group of teens as before. For future reference I will list their names below._

_Honda Tohru._

_Sohma Kyo._

_Sohma Yuki._

_Sohma Momiji._

_Sohma Hatsuharu._

_Uotani Arisa._

_Saki Hanajima._

_Uontani and Hanajima were with the group when hollow surfaced this afternoon, however they were not present a few nights ago._

_There were no incidents of the reiatsu fluctuation, but that is not uncommon as there has been numerous days without incident._

_Will report again when I have more information._

_\- Hitsugaya Taicho._

* * *

**Second chapter is down!**

**Kotatsu – It's a low wooden table that has its own heating source; it can either be built into the table or added later. Sometimes a futon is added for extra warmth. **

**Yonbantai – Fourth squad**

**Tabi (this was actually in the first chapter but I forgot to add it so I'll just put it here for now) – Traditional Japanese socks, they big toe is separated from the little toes. **

**Shunpo – Referred to as 'flash-step' in the English dub. This allows for the Shinigami to move faster than the eye can see. Its been said that Toshiro is an expert at this.**

**Gikon – Shinigami use this to remove themselves from a gigai (it's more of a dispenser for the gikongan). There are different models of gikon, the most popular one being chappy and the least popular is king. More often than not the type of gikon a Shinigami uses reflects their personality. I know it seems odd that Toshiro would use King because it is described as 'stupid' but it is also very diligent, just like Toshiro. For future reference, whenever Toshiro uses the gikon I'm going to refer to it as King. **

**Gikongan – The pill that is inside the gikon, it has a foreign reiastu that takes hold of the object it is inserted into. It's more commonly referred to as soul candy.**

**Junrinan – The area that Toshiro group up together with Momo.**

**With the part about Kyoko's accident I just want to clarify that I don't condone speeding. I just want to show that while the driver was at fault and did cause the death of Kyoko it didn't necessarily mean that he was a bad person. He just did a stupid thing.**

**Also if I offended anyone with my talk of bravery and all that I apologise. I'm not having a go at people who put their lives at risk for others (the police, fire fighters, etc.) I'm just saying that sometimes when you watch something on TV you can think 'Wow! That was really brave.' and also think at the same time 'that was really stupid though.' Do you get what I mean? **

**I just want to say sorry again for the wait; I hope that it was worth it.**

**R and R**

**DragonShenron**


	3. Jumping to Conclusions

**DISCLAIMER: I DON'T OWN FRUITS BASKET OR BLEACH, NOR DO I PROFIT FROM THIS STORY.**

**Thank you to everyone who has reviewed, or put this story on their favourite/follow list. It's greatly appreciated.**

**First of all, I would like to apologise for how long it has taken me to update. I honestly didn't mean for it to get this bad. The past few months have been a bit hectic for me, I was made redundant at my work and as you can imagine looking for a job has taken up most of my time. But I am now officially apart of the work force!**

**Yay!**

**Once again, I am very sorry for the lack of updates.**

* * *

_Previously…_

_Hana nodded, she had moved to the front of the group by now. "Sometimes that is the case, however" she stopped in her tracks, causing the group to stop with her, "That doesn't explain why I felt two sets of electric waves coming from him."_

* * *

**Jumping to Conclusions**

_Hitsugaya Taicho,_

_It cannot be helped if you have to interact with the people Kaibara, but tread with caution. It wouldn't be wise for them to be caught up our affairs, nor you with theirs._

_Nonetheless, it would be prudent to keep an eye on the teens that the hollow targeted. I have spoken with Kurotstchi Taicho and his research has said that this is first recorded hollow attack in Kaibara, it is likely that the reiatsu fluctuations drew the hollow and that more will eventually follow._

_I expect your next report in a week's time._

_\- Yamamoto Soutaicho._

* * *

He'd been having such a nice day today. The morning sun had woken him from a peaceful slumber and when he finally dragged himself away from bed he was greeted with a hot breakfast and a dazzling smile from Tohru. He barely registered the bickering pair of zodiac teens as they picked at their breakfast, before they left for another day at School, Tohru providing a neutral barrier between the two of them.

The afternoon had been lovely; the breeze had wafted over him in soft waves when he was dozing at his desk. The chirping birds had delivered a harmonious song accompanied by the ringing of his phone as he made himself cozy in front of the television. No doubt a frantic Mitsuru had left him multiple messages begging him to finish the next portion of his book. Messages that would more than likely go unanswered, until she showed up at his door and forced him to finish his work. Really, that woman is no fun. No fun at all.

Yes his day had been nice, if not perfect, and would be topped off with a nice helping of Tohru's delicious food. Not to mention that her girl friends would be coming over for dinner as well. High School girls, is anything better than that?

That was all forgotten when that grump Kyo came home, the others trailing in after him. Tohru had immediately bustled into the kitchen, eager to start dinner, Uo and Hana following after her, most likely offering their assistance. So he was left with four teenage boys, all temperamental in their own unique ways. What a joy.

"Now that's a sour face if I ever saw one. What's got you in such a twist?" Shigure teased Kyo as the boys settled down around the kotatsu. Yuki pulled out some of his school supplies, opening his physics book and taking down notes while Haru and Momiji were watched the evening news. Kyo, with his extensive and sophisticated vocabulary, just growled at him.

"He was there today, at School." Yuki offered the quiet exmplanation, never taking his eyes off his book. "Hitsugaya joined our class today."

Shigure blinked and let a low whistle. "You're kidding?" He had actually forgotten about the incident a few nights ago, writing off the sudden appearance of the boy as left over hysteria from Tohru's near miss. This was definitely a new, not to mention bizarre, development.

"Nuh-uh!" Momiji interjected eagerly; chipper as always, as if there was nothing out of the ordinary. "Everyone was talking about him today, how he saved Tohru and his cool demeanor. He's making quite the splash isn't he Haru?" The other teen nodded in agreement quiet as always. Well, maybe not always but you get the idea.

"Is he now?" Shigure sighed and his shoulders sagged somewhat. Such a great day, put to waste. "I guess there's no avoiding it then. We'll go see Kazuma tomorrow, he might have an idea about what going on."

They all knew that it was lie. How could anyone possibly explain this?

* * *

Yesterday, Toshiro made the rash decision that School was the biggest waste of time he ever had the displeasure of experiencing. He would now like to amend that statement.

_Gym_, Toshiro now knew for sure, was the biggest waste of time he ever had the displeasure of experiencing.

Now this might come as shock considering his chosen occupation, which required him to be at the peak of physical fitness at all times. But Toshiro had come to learn that there is a considerable difference between the standard training session for a Shinigami and that of a typical teenager. For example: Toshiro has never once judged his new recruits on their ability to climb a rope, and too his knowledge, neither did any of his colleagues. Why would they? That's beauty of shunpo it can take Toshiro anywhere he wanted to go, provided he had enough reatsu, and even if he didn't Hyourinmaru would gladly offer his assistance.

Yet here he stood in the middle of the gymnasium, in shorts much too short for liking, but he's sure Rangiku would _love_, next in line to climb a rope. The student currently attempting the arduous task was struggling, his face dripping with sweat and his legs flailing beneath him.

At the beginning of the period the teacher had demonstrated the 'proper' technique to use when climbing a rope. Kaede Tsukuda had jumped to grab a hold of the rope and brought her legs up to her chest, her arms supporting her weight, before straightening her legs and catching the rope between her feet. She then began to climb, her arms doing most of the work and made it to the top a few minutes later. From the moment the woman had begun Toshiro knew it was a flawed technique that actually made the task more difficult than it should be. The problem was that it relied far too heavily on upper body strength and far too little on the legs. When you lift something you're always told to lift with your legs, not your back and it's the same concept when climbing a rope. The technique the instructor had shown only allows for the rope to be held securely between the feet, essentially making the legs dead weight and making it harder to complete the task.

The fact that no student has managed to get the top was enough evidence of that. Toshiro wasn't surprised in the least when some of the students didn't even try, the activity, Hanajima being at the forefront of this group. The girl hadn't even taken more than two steps towards the crash mats before she claimed injury and calmly walked towards the bleachers, without a backwards glance at the fuming teacher. Looking that the group, who now seem to be playing a card game, Toshiro idly thinks that Rangiku and Hanajima would get along famously.

Kaede sighed and signaled for the student struggling student to come back down. "It was a good effort Hayashi-san, but I think that's enough for today."

Hayashi was sitting on the crash mats, his breath coming out in heavy pants and in desperate need of a water break. The boy nodded, more than happy to let the next unlucky soul behind him have their turn.

Kaede crossed him off the list and looked over her clipboard at Toshiro. "Hitsugaya-san?" she gave the boy a once over, taking in his small size and lean body. "You think you can do this? You can sit out if its too much for you." She asked concerned.

Toshiro's brow twitched as some of the students snickered. How he managed to keep his voice calm he didn't know. "I'm sure that I can manage." Okay, so maybe he sounded a bit smug, but come on! He's been run through on multiple occasions, fallen from hundreds of meters in the air, nearly been cut in half by Aizen, and yet these people didn't think he'd be able to climb a rope?! A Captain of the Gotei Thirteen! A rope would not be able to best him on his worst of days.

Not that they knew any of this, but it's the principle of thing.

Kaede stared at him for a few moments before shrugging. "If you say so kid." If he wanted to give it a go than she wasn't going to stop him.

Toshiro stepped onto the crash mats, the soft material hardly giving way under him. He looked at the rope for a few seconds before he jumped to grab the rope, but instead of catching the rope between his legs, as Kaede had told them to, he let it rest on his right side. Bending his right leg, Toshiro brought his left leg behind him and hooked the bottom of the rope around his left foot, masking sure to leave enough slack rope for his right foot to rest on. Pushing the rope forward some, he managed to angle to slack bit of rope into the arch of his right shoe. Straightening his legs Toshiro now basically standing on the rope. Pulling himself up the rope he repeated what he had done moments before, once again standing on the rope, only this time he is a meter off the ground. Now it's just a means of repeating the process until he reaches the top.

He does so less than half a minute later.

* * *

"How the hell did he do that so quickly?" Kyo asked surprised, listening to his classmates congratulate Toshiro on his performance. Kyo had no doubt that he would be able to make it to the top, his training with Kazuma demanded that he have a fair amount of upper body strength, but even he knew his limits. It would take him at least a few minutes to accomplish the task, and yet Toshiro had managed it in what felt like a few scant seconds.

"He's remarkably…spry for somebody who's supposed to be dead." Yuki said quietly from behind him, only loud enough for Kyo to hear.

"Don't say that would ya? It's creepy enough as is without you brining it up all the time." Kyo growled at Yuki, sending a scathing glare at the grey haired teen. "Besides, we don't know anything yet. It could just be a coincidence."

Yuki let out a derisive snort. "You sound like Shigure. Didn't you shoot him down for saying that exact same thing you just said? What was it you said?" Yuki put his hand to his chin, and cocked his hip. _"Yeah, I bet there are a ton of white haired, green eyes teenagers called Hitsugaya Toshiro running around." _The impression was uncanny if not a tad insulting. "You hypocrite."

"You're a real bastard you know that?"

* * *

No sound has ever been as glorious as the final bell of the School day; the relief that flows over a person as they hear it is splendid and can never be outdone. Freedom is a wonderful feeling. Not to mention it meant that Toshiro could finally get away from overbearing teenagers and enthusiastic teachers, who he may or may not believe to be insane, and get some peace and quiet. Yesterday the students had been very energetic about welcoming him to their School, offering to let him sit with them at lunch or give him a personal tour of the grounds. Today had been worse, much worse.

His performance in gym had spread through the student body like wild fire and his popularity had grown even further. He didn't even have time to open his lunch before he was accosted by every club president in the School, all of them talking over one another for the entire lunch period, getting louder and louder as time went on. The only one he would consider joining would be the soccer club, but the extra hours would interfere with his mission. He politely declined every offer saying that he wanted to focus on his studies and wouldn't be able to commit to any club. They had been disappointed but understood his reasoning. It was only when the history teacher had walked settled down at their desk that Toshio realized he didn't get to eat his lunch, effectively putting him in a lousy mood for the rest of the day.

So the last thing he wanted to see when he left the School grounds was Uotani and Hanajima, the former leaning casually against the School gates. Hoping beyond all hope that they weren't waiting for him, he quietly made his way past them.

"Hey shorty! Hold on a second."

'_This day just keeps getting better and better.' _Toshiro thought as the two girls caught up to him. "I would prefer if you didn't call me that, it's demeaning." He stated in an icy tone, looking directly at Uotani who shrugged in response, not caring either way. Toshiro rolled his eyes and continued heading in the direction of his apartment, a little dismayed to see that the two girls were rather insistent on walking with him.

"You did well in today. You impressed a lot of people." Hanajima gave him a small smile. Uotani smirked and punched him good-naturedly in the arm. "Yeah kid, you put everyone else to shame with that little stunt."

"It wasn't my intention, but thank you." Toshiro said to Hana, giving her a nod before sending a bored look up at Uotani. "Don't call me kid. It's Hitsugaya."

"Whatever, you can't tell me that you weren't showing off when you did that." She laughed and put an arm around his shoulders, bending down quite a bit to do so. "The look on your face when-" She was abruptly cut off when a shrill ringing came from Toshiro's pocket, a catchy pop song silencing the obnoxiously, at least in his opinion, tall teen.

"Is that Girls Generation? Cute." Uotani smirked at the blushing Taicho as he fished his phone out of his pocket, glaring at the offending object, ignoring the inelegant snort from Hanajima. Such a cutesy song should not be the ringtone for a Captain, especially when he distinctly remembered setting it to the default tone when he was first given it. It was only a few days before he was deployed here, he had been fiddling with the device when he was summoned for a meeting with the Soutaicho. He remembered putting it in his desk before he left so there shouldn't be any reason that…oh she did not!

"Damnit Matsumoto." Toshiro muttered as he flipped open the phone, seeing that Ukitake was trying to contact him. He shrugged off Uotani and quietly excused himself, answering the call when he was out of hearing range.

"Hello Ukitake-san." He hears a faint crackling on the other end and rolls his eyes. Ukitake has put him on speakerphone and Toshiro didn't need to guess as to who was with the man.

"_Toshiro-kun! I'm glad you were able to pick up, it's been too long since we last spoke."_ Came the jovial tone of the sickly man.

"I've been busy."

"_No need to be so callous Shiro-kun!"_ Kyoraku teased as he inserted himself into the conversation. _"We called to check up on you and this is how you treat us? For shame."_

"You called me so that you wouldn't have to do your paperwork, and don't call me that!"

"_I don't know why you're so upset Shiro-kun," _Kyoraku continued unperturbed,_ "you're living the dream. Constantly surrounded by pretty High School girls. How many numbers have you gotten? Don't be shy now, tell uncle Kyoraku everything."_

"Keep your perverted thoughts to yourself old man," Toshiro growled down the phone. "Did you have a reason for calling me other than to annoy me?" The silence on the other end of the line was the only answer he needed. "You two are unbelievable."

"_Don't be like that Toshiro-kun! We just wanted to see how you were coping with everything."_ Toshiro didn't know that Ukitake was capable of sounding so petulant. _"We can pass on messages for you if you'd like?" _

"Tell Matsumoto that she's a dead woman."

"_That's our Ran-chan, able to cause trouble no matter great the distance." _The pair erupted into uproarious laughter, despite not knowing what woman had done to he poor Taicho.

"If she ever does something like this again-"

"Hey, who you talking to?" Uotani called out as she interrupted Toshiro, the teen had obviously grown impatient with how long Toshiro was taking.

A heavy silence fell on the other end of the line, and Toshiro discovered just how loud silence could be. He stood as stiff as board, and his hands shook as the quiet stretched, becoming more and more awkward for the small Taicho.

"_Was that a girl!?" _Kyoraku asked excitedly, _"Did you hear that Jushiro? Shiro-kun is with a girl!"_ There was a loud sniff from the other man as he gave a garbled response of 'being so happy'.

"It's not what you think!" Toshiro yelled down the phone, startling the two teens behind him. He had gone from quiet to enraged in less than a second. Hanajima frowned at the boy, his electric waves were becoming eratic.

"_It's alright Shiro-kun, you don't have to pretend with us." _ Ukitake was still too emotional to respond, so Kyoraku had full reign over the conversation. _"I always knew you were a ladies man!"_

"Would you two shut up? You always jump to conclusions!" He was getting louder, making the girls behind him grow more concerned.

"Is everything alright Hitsugaya-kun?" Hanajima now called out to her frustrated classmate.

Toshiro felt like banging his head against the wall lamenting the impeccable timing of Uotani and Hanajima. Really the girls were a huge help.

"_Two?! You have two girls? Shiro-kun you are one lucky man!"_

"I'm hanging up now."

"_Of course! Give your full and undivided attention to those lovely-"_

* * *

If Kazuma had to choose one word for what he felt when he answered his door this afternoon, he would have to go with 'befuddled'. Not because Kyo had rung his doorbell, the boy was respectful of his privacy and didn't like to come in uninvited. What surprised him was that there were five zodiac members perched on his doorstep, all waiting patiently to be welcomed inside. Shigure had been known to drop by from time to time, often unannounced, and would stay until the wee hours of the morning until he was dragged back home by a disgruntled Yuki or Kyo. However, he can't recall a time that Hatsuharu or Momiji had ever been to his home.

And that's what set him on edge.

'_Which is why tea is a good choice.' _His guests began to settle themselves in his living room while he bustled off into the kitchen, keen on getting the kettle boiling as soon as possible. There is no doubt in his mind that this was going to be a visit to remember whether he would like it or not.

"Sorry for intruding like this." Shigure calls from the living room, his tone conveying that he is anything but sorry. The man lived to make others uncomfortable.

"It's quite alright, I enjoy the company. But I must say, it is rather odd to see you without Ayame and Hatori. It seems like you three are joined at the hip when you're out and about."

Shigure barked out a laugh. "Very true, Kazuma. They don't exactly know that we're here, no doubt Ayame would blow everything out of proportion."

"That's an understatement." Came the harmonized voices of Kyo and Yuki, causing them both to scowl at one other. Hatsuharu snorted and Momiji coughed to hide his own.

Kazuma stepped out of his kitchen and leaned against the doorframe, his eyebrow cocked. "Oh? So I'm correct in assuming this isn't a social call?"

"Anything but my friend. In fact, what we're about to tell you is rather disturbing."

'_Perhaps I'll need something stronger than tea.'_

* * *

There is no way, absolutely no way they're telling the truth. It's all a trick, a cruel prank that Shigure managed to talk or more likely blackmail them into. That's why Hatori and Ayame didn't come with them. Hatori would never go through with such a farce nor would he let Shigure do something so nasty. Ayame wouldn't be able to keep his mouth shut, proclaiming it as a joke and laughing it off before anyone could step through the front door.

Then why was Kyo with them? No, that's not fair. Why would _any _of the younger zodiac take part it in? They're good kids, they wouldn't do something like this.

Something that Akito would do.

He knows that he's kidding himself. Knows that despite everything that Shigure's done and what he's willing to do, this is something he would leave alone, he wouldn't dare touch this without good reason. Because it's precious and oh so breakable and he hopes to god that they're wrong. That it's all a dream they'll wake from and never speak of.

Except there's no denying the feeling bubbling up in his chest. No matter what he thinks or feels to try and keep it down. To keep it contained. It consumes fear; it relishes on his disgust, it taunts confusion and walks all over bitterness like it isn't even there. It refuses to be locked away and forgotten, taken over from a depression long since passed. Others come with it, hand in hand, dragged from the recesses of his mind, of his heart.

Joy, fascination, relief, wonder…

_Happiness._

* * *

_Mission status update._

_I've still been unable to locate the origin of the reiatsu fluctuations. Kaibara looks promising and I believe the Sohma's are involved in some way. Will investigate further._

_On another note, could you please forbid Ukitake Taicho and Kyoraku Taicho from contacting me about anything that doesn't pertain to this mission?_

_Awaiting further orders._

_\- Hitsugaya Taicho_

* * *

**Hey buddies!**

**Its good to be able to update again, hopefully there wont be another break as long as this one was.**

**Not much happened this chapter, the next few are mostly setting up the plot and generally covering all my bases, but I know I've bound to miss some. So if you're confused about anything or I've stuffed something up, please feel free to leave it in a review or pm me!**

**I actually googled proper rope climbing techniques for this chapter and I got to say, it was pretty interesting. The technique that Toshiro used is called the Brake and Squat technique, you should check it out if I didn't explain it clearly enough and you want a visual reference. Keep in mind that there are a couple of different ways to execute this technique so the video you see might be different to the watched. Luckily I have never had to climb a rope but my condolences to anyone who has, because good god that looks like hard work.**

**I'm pretty sure that Schools don't actually do the rope thing anymore because 'hey, you wanna get sued?' but for the sake of this fic, it still goes on.**

**Anyway I hope you enjoyed it!**

**R and R**

**DragonShenron**


	4. Rich Man Poor Man

**DISCLAIMER: I DON'T OWN FRUITS BASKET OR BLEACH, NOR DO I PORFIT FROM THIS STORY.**

**Thank you to everyone who reviewed, or put this on their favourite/follow list! You rock!**

**(Word kept trying to get me to change 'their' to 'his or her' but not everyone identifies as that do they? Get with the times!) I will do my best to make my author notes gender neutral from now on.**

**Bet you weren't expecting to get another chapter so soon (soon compared to my last update). I'm full of surprises. Not that I blame you, it did take me over 18 months to update last time.**

_**TRIGGER WARNING FOR MENTIONS OF BLOOD AND ABUSE! IF WANT TO SKIP THAT PART, IT STARTS JUST AFTER THE CONVERSATION BETWEEN HATORI, AYAME AND SHIGURE!**_

**Work was tiring but good, happy to be doing something productive again.**

* * *

_Previously…_

_Except there's no denying the feeling bubbling up in his chest. No matter what he thinks or feels to try and keep it down. To keep it contained. It consumes fear; it relishes on his disgust, it taunts confusion and walks all over bitterness like it isn't even there. It refuses to be locked away and forgotten, taken over from a depression long since passed. Others come with it, hand in hand, dragged from the recesses of his mind, of his heart._

_Joy, fascination, relief, wonder…_

_Happiness._

_Hitsugaya Taicho,_

_Your lack of progress is frustrating to say the least. If you do not locate the source soon your away team will be dispatched to assist you._

_I have no control over what your colleagues do in their spare time, they have however been ordered to keep social calls to a minimum._

_\- Yamamoto Soutaicho._

* * *

**Rich Man Poor Man**

_Sixty years ago…_

_Tensai Academy was by all means a well to do School, its successful sporting life attracting some of the largest companies in Japan, all bidding to sponsor at team. The baseball club was the most sought after; winning Nationals five years in a row made them a hot commodity, one not to be taken lightly. The soccer club was next; they had sourced rising players from Elementary Schools and worked them until they functioned like a well-oiled machine, almost impossible to beat. The track team was in third place, followed by the basketball club and so on a so forth. _

_The academic achievements of its students weren't to be over looked either. The mathematics club had recently won nationals, keeping its record-wining streak of seven years firmly on track. Nakamura Hideki made headlines across Japan for reciting over forty two thousand decimal places of Pi, beating out University students and professors for the honour. The student body also achieved excellence by placing first in all mandatory numeracy and literacy examinations. _

_Tensai Academy was by all means a well to do School. _

_An exclusive School, which could only be attended by those invited to join the state of the art institution. _

_Now, there are many ways that a prospective student can be invited. As stated before, one can excel in sports, and have an offer extended to them on the condition that they represent the Academy in said game. On the off chance that their grades are lacking, a tutor will be provided and paid for by the board, anything for a professional athlete in the making._

_Alternatively, one can excel in academics. When admission times roll around, the Tensai Academy Administration Board will be given access to student's most recent examanation results. Those who place within the ninety-eighth percentile will automatically be approached about attending the Academy; the incentive of unlimited access to the library constantly sealed the deal._

_However, athletic abilities and academic achievements were not the only point of interest for the Academy._

_Money makes the world go round, or so they say._

_Those born with a silver spoon in the mouth were lucky enough to join Tensai Academy, it didn't matter if their grades were poor or if they skipped out on every gym class. Money is money and an avaricious Academy like Tensai, would never let someone of means slip through their fingers. Not that many tried to get away of course. Who in their right mind would reject such an offer?_

_So it could be said, with absolute authority, that Sohma Sawako was not in her right mind when she declined to join Tensai Academy. No matter what they offered she steadfastly refused, even going as far as slamming the door on one particularly stubborn board member. Her mother was not happy when a bill came in the mail for his fractured nose. Totally worth the month she was grounded._

_Instead, Sawako decided to go to Kaibara Junior High, not a bad School in its own right, but it wasn't Tensai Academy. The grades were passable, maybe a little above average; it had a standard sporting curriculum and the teams played decently in tournaments. The location was ideal, only a twenty minute walk from the family estate, but the most appealing aspect of Kaibara Junior High was that it was _friendly.

_However, no establishment is free of rumours._

_Sawako had been big news in her first year; she was the girl to reject Tensai Academy, the girl who fractured Kurosawa Noburu's nose, and a member of the Sohma family no less._

"_Apparently her grades were so poor that it didn't matter how much money her family has, they pulled her offer. She's just trying to save face by 'rejecting' them. What a loser."_

"_I heard that Kurosawa threatened to sue if she set foot on the premises."_

"_Are you kidding me? She's the leader of a gang called 'The Ladies', you can go over and talk to her if you want to man, but I'm staying here."_

_Luckily enough, this had only lasted a few weeks before people became bored and moved onto the next big thing. The rest of year was spent studying and hanging out with her two best friends, Tanaka Hoshiko and Hisakawa Chiyo._

_So when news broke of a student transferring _out_ of Tensai Academy and _into_ Kaibara the rumour mill went into chaos. _

_Just who is this Hitsugaya anyway?_

* * *

"Rich Man Poor Man?"

"That's right, since Ishihara-Sensei is in a meeting we're gonna try and get a few rounds in. You interested?" Uotani was turned around in her seat, legs straddling the back of the chair, her arms bracing her as she leaned towards Toshiro. It was nearing the end of the school week and the white haired boy was still on everyone's minds, his performance in gym still the topic of the discussion, much to his displeasure.

No much had happened in the two days proceeding that fateful day, regarding his shinigami duties at least. School, however was another story entirely. Toshiro had managed to find a secluded spot on the grounds to spend his lunch period and check over new reports sent to him by his division or the Soutaicho. It was perfect really; he was away from his noisy classmates, who would no doubt try to goad him into playing a game of some sort with them, never giving him a moment's peace. He had also discovered that they were remarkably nosey. He shuddered, remembering the lunch incident from yesterday.

"_Why are you always on your phone Toshiro? Unless…oh you sly dog! You've got a girl don't you?"_

"_Or boyfriend perhaps?"_

"_Ohhhh I totally didn't think of that."_

"_Looks important anyway. You're not breaking up with them are you? Or are you trying to keep them from breaking up with you?"_

"_Someone's breaking up with Hitsu-chan!?"_

It had only been made worse by Rangiku choosing to call him at that very moment, while his classmates who were ready to defend his 'honour' surrounded him. So when the name 'Matusmoto Rangiku' popped up on his screen, a silence had ushered over the students and Toshiro was ready to quit then and there. Mission be damned, hell make that war be damned, Switzerland is supposed to be nice around this time of year, he could really use a vacation and the Soutaicho wouldn't dare venture to a place so cold.

As it would turn out, the Girls Generation ringtone that had sprung so merrily from his phone the day before was not the only song Rangiku had programmed into his contacts. Evidently the Fukutaicho found it prudent that she set a specific ringtone just for her, and as the mortifying song echoed in the classroom Toshiro wished that she had left well enough alone.

"_Is that 'Don't Cha' by The Pussycat Dolls?"_

He made a speedy exit after that, wanting nothing to do his classmates or these 'pussycat' people or mannequins or whatever it is they call themselves.

Yes, finding that small little nook on the grounds was a godsend for Toshiro, and god how he wished he were there now.

"I don't know how to play." Toshiro said coming out of his thoughts, only to cringe when Uotani gave him a look that he could only describe as unbridled joy. How it was possible to make such a happy emotion look menacing was beyond him.

"Oh really now?" Uotani unceremoniously slapped her hands down on his desk and stood from her chair, drawing the attention of the rest of the class. "Well that's gonna change here and now." The former Yankee shoved her abandoned chair out of the way and pushed her desk against Toshiro's, pulling a few other deserted desks their way and before long there were six desks lined up alongside each other. Uotani turned to the class, sending one last smirk at Toshiro before she spoke. "Round up! We've got ourselves a newbie to teach!" Turning so she once again faced Toshiro, she crossed her arms as her classmates formed behind her, all of them wearing their own twisted looks of delight, though Toshiro was happy to note that a few did seem friendly. "Get ready _Daihinmin. _You're up against some of the best players in our School, or better yet, the district. You're in for one hell of a ride." Toshiro did not miss the way Uotani glanced at Hanjima when she said this, he'll have to watch out for her it would seem "You up for it?"

Well, if there's one thing Toshiro loves, it's a challenge.

* * *

"This is so exciting!" Ayame squealed, dancing from one side of the room to the next, his long gray hair trailing behind him. "It's weird obviously, but who couldn't do with a bit of that to brighten their boring dreary lives?"

"You're more than capable of doing that yourself Aya', no third party required." Shigure laughed at his longtime friend.

"That's why my boutique is essential." Ayame continued as he sat down next to the quiet Hatori, who was being his usual taciturn self. "Nothing revitalizes a relationship more than a little eccentricity." He added with a flick of his hair, cocking his head to the side as he looked at Shigure. The three friends were seated on the decking outside of Hatori's office, used teacups on the table behind them to help ward off the slight chill in the air.

"What you call eccentricity I would call outlandish."

"Says the man into High School girls."

"That hurts Aya, don't kink shame me."

"What you call a kink, I call illegal." Ayame teased, enjoying the flustered look spreading over Shigure's face. The man was so easy to rile up once you knew what buttons to push, after so many years of friendship Ayame had a fair share of material at his disposal.

"How is Honda-san?" Hatori interrupted before they could continue their banter. While listening to the pair blather on usually calmed the stoic man, today it only served to grate on his nerves. They had more pressing issues to discuss than Shigure's alarming fascination of High School girls, though he did make a note to have a serious discussion about the matter with the man in the coming weeks. "Even though she is uninjured, such a traumatic event would have rattled her."

Shigure waved his hand in dismissal. "She was fine, Kyo and Yuki took care of her for the weekend, didn't let her lift a finger. It was rather charming really; they did all the cooking and cleaning, Yuki did all the grocery shopping and Kyo fixed the holes in the roof. Honestly, they boy needs to find another place to nap, my poor roof is fragile." He lent back on his hand, swinging his legs in a kid-like fashion. "It was like their own form of therapy, Momiji and Hatsuharu came over to help as well!"

"That wouldn't happen to be the reason you stayed at my house that weekend, would it? Hiding from all the responsibility, hmmm?"

"Aya' please…"

Ayame laughed at Shigures pout. "For him to save Tohru from getting hit by a car, even going so far as to take the brunt of the fall for her speaks volumes about his character. Seems we have quite the plucky fellow on our hands."

Hatori nodded his head, lighting up a cigarette as he did so. "Who would expect less? He really does live up to the stories." He sighed, taking a long drag before talking once more. "Kazuma must be going out of his mind trying to figure all this out."

"He was confused more than anything, seemed to be the only emotion he could settle on, though he looked rather frightened as well." Said Shigure.

"Aren't we all?"

* * *

If Akito was honest, and lets face it Akito is always honest, the only reason for one to venture to this side of the compound is that of pure boredom. Only the older zodiac resided in that area of the compound, and they were a lot less easy to manipulate than their younger counterparts. Not that it was impossible; it only required more finesse and few little white lies, scattered in just the right way to make it look like the truth, and they were putty in your hands.

Hatori had been the favourite for a few years, the man being so disgustingly happy with _her _that it couldn't be helped. Akito was supposed to be the centre of their world, their _God_! Hatori had known that, Hatori understood that and the pitiful little dragon damn well respected that. Respected Akito by keeping silent. But then she came along, that _Kana_ woman, and suddenly the man discovered words of dissent, he actually left his office and interacted with people other than those two idiotic friends of his.

Akito knew she would have to go, Akito would do everything, _anything_, to make her disappear. Akito was going to do what was right, Akito was going to take away that happiness, and Akito was going to take back what was once understood.

Akito is the centre of your world.

Who needs finesse when a vase to the face is a fine substitute? When the blood that drips down their face serves to remind them of the times that they rebuffed Akito and sent who should be their reason for living to the dusty recesses of their mind. When their limbs are shaking, struggling to hold themselves up and know, they know, that will have to lean on Akito to stand once more. It's a give and take; Akito will only allow you to take when you are ready to give. But Akito will always take more, because Akito deserves more and Akito is God so it's only right.

And Akito wants Hatori, all of Hatori.

Though, Akito had rationalized at the time, he could really do without that eye. It had been a spur of the moment thought. Get the eye Akito, take the eye that that strayed from you, it belongs to you Akito. Make it yours forever Akito, when he looks in the mirror and the scars are a painful reminder of what is lost, he will think of _you _Akito.

Things had gone smoothly after that, so much so that Akito felt calm once more, safe being their God.

Then she came along, another girl who was intent to shatter Akito's perfect world. What was it about girls with brown hair and brown eyes that turned the zodiac mush? She commanded respect with a smile; she had their loyalty with just a few words and she had their love, without asking for anything in return.

Honda Tohru never took, only gave and it drove Akito insane. Didn't that little brat understand that respect came from underfoot and loyalty from fear? That love was all about taking? If you gave what you take it's partnership, its _equal _and who could ever be equal with God?

Nobody.

And that's why Honda Tohru needs to go.

Overhearing Shigure speaking about the girls near miss a few nights prior put Akito on cloud nine. He had been speaking so loudly that Akito could hear from the other side of the door, loudly recounting how a young boy had saved her from the oncoming car. That had been enough to send Akito straight back to the main building, disgust replacing the elation felt just a few second ago. Who would be stupid enough to save that annoying girl?

Maybe they need to go as well.

* * *

Nobody could have prepared them for this the slaughter in front of their eyes. The best fell at his hand, one by one hoorah, hoorah. One pass after the next each leaving a dull ache not easily soothed. This wasn't supposed to happen, they were prepared, years of experience at their disposal with deeply rooted strategies that would guarantee their victory.

Their arrogance had gotten the better of them, that much was a given now. Most were gracious in defeat, fading quietly into the background but one was not so silent.

"How the hell did you do that?!" Kyo squawked, looking down at the discarded cards before him, Tohru had just added the last of her cards to the pile, meaning that Kyo was now the only player left with a full hand. "Don't know how to play my ass! You've won every game so far!" He angrily threw his cards on the heap, ignoring the snickers of his classmates behind him.

Like everyone else Kyo thought that it would be an easy win, nobody was good at Rich Man Poor Man on their first go. Usually they were the Daihinmin, the lowest social class in the game and therefore the loser of that round. Imagine their surprise when Toshiro was declared Daifugo, the grand millionaire and the top tier of the social class, in the very first round he played.

"Looks like the Daihinmin is a little wound up." Uo smirked, she was the Heimin for this round, average in her social status and two classes above Daihinmin, a title held by Kyo for the last three rounds. It was not a mantle he bore proudly.

"Yes, please calm yourself Kyo-Kyo. Your electric waves are becoming quite the bother." Hana said in a bored manner, she had held onto her Fugo status throughout all of the rounds so far, just a step down from Daifugo. It had been herself and Toshiro who played in all rounds thus far, four different people joining with every new hand that was dealt.

Toshiro sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose. "I enjoy strategy games, I just applied the same logic from those games to this one." He said dismissively shrugging his shoulders, though he couldn't deny the pride he felt being declared the winner, a millionaire no less. It would most likely be the only time such a title would be attached to him.

Growing up in Junrinan, one of the better of districts of West Rukongai, meant that he didn't lack the basic essentials. There was hardly any crime and small business flourished, numerous noble families would commute so that they could same their famous black beans and pork dumplings. It was nice area, one where families could venture out at night without fear of being attacked in the most brutal of ways. Unlike that of the eightieth district of West Rukongai, a place where it wasn't safe to leave your home during the day let alone when it got dark.

Toshiro could assure you of that first hand. He had pulled himself from that awful district a few years before he wandered onto his Granny's doorstep, the kindly woman welcoming him with a warm cup of tea and the first real bed Toshiro had the pleasure of using in years.

But that was a story for another day.

"Well, it seems to work for you. After all you did just get out of cleaning duty this afternoon." Uo Snickered. "Sucks to be you Kyo."

"Shut up you damn Yankee!"

* * *

"Good evening Kyo, I wasn't expecting to see you today, It's a good thing I put the kettle on." Kazuma greeted as his charge let himself into his house. "I see you brought a friend along with you. How are you today Honda-san?" He bowed to the kindhearted girl. She had accomplished so much in the few years she known the Sohma's, made leaps and bounds – especially with the aforementioned teen– without even noticing.

"I'm very well, thank you Kazuma-san. How are you?" Tohru replied, taking off her shoes in favour of the slippers at the front door. She always enjoyed Kazuma's company, his quiet demeanour so different to the rest of the Sohma's, except for that of Hatori, but he was another anomaly amongst the rest of the exuberant zodiac members. Kazuma was a clam soul that never failed to ground Tohru.

"I am fine as well." He smiled at the girl. "But what about you Kyo? What are you pouting about today?" He asked, spotting the sullen look on the Kyo's face.

"I'm not pouting!"

"I suppose you're sulking then? Much better."

Tohru giggled at the two, Kyo going redder by the second as Kazuma gave him a teasing smile. "We played Rich Man Poor Man today in class. Kyo lost the last round and had to take over the end of day cleaning duties as punishment."

Kazuma laughed and shook his head. "Not to worry Kyo, I've never been good at Rich Man Poor Man or card games in general. I'm more of a board game man myself. Tohru giggled, missing the embarrassed flush spreading across his cheeks.

The sound of the kettle whistling cut through the conversation. Before Kazuma could even turn towards his kitchen, Tohru was already offering her assistance and bustled her way over to the kitchen, leaving a blinking Kazuma in her wake. The man turned towards his charge, question poised on his tongue.

The boy shrugged. "She likes to help out, it's just the way she is. She always needs to be doing something or helping someone. No matter who they are and what they done."

"She's an exceedingly kind individual." Kazuma gave Kyo a knowing look, who gave an annoyed huff and pushed away from the wall.

"It's what gets her in so much troub-"

At that moment Tohru returned from the kitchen, unprepared for Kyo to be in the middle of the lounge room – he'd been leaning up against the wall just a second ago – and crashed into the orange haired teen. Sending her to the floor with a crash along with the three teacups she was carrying, thanking her lucky stars that she'd decided to bring the cups out first and not the kettle. While she nursed her behind, Kyo was left to fight his way out of puddle of clothes and soft orange clouds.

* * *

Toshiro was out his window and halfway down the street within seconds. He felt it again, that damn reiastu irregularity that got him stuck here in the first place. He bounded over the rooftops, feet barely touching the tiling before he leapt to the next house.

After about a minute or so Toshiro settled himself in a tree, taking his time to scan the area. It was strange, usually when there was a disturbance in a town's reiastu the source would move periodically. One day it might be in the heart of a bustling shopping district and the next it would be on the outskirts of a residential area. This was unique case, the source hardly moved, it was always in the small region of Kaibara and it never traveled more than two hundred meters between its usual paired flares of reiastu. Meaning that once a flare occurred another would be sure to follow within at least a half an hour. Since his deployment to Kaibara he has recorded one pair lasting only two minutes while another dragged on for 30 minutes.

That gave Toshiro an advantage. Not only does he have approximated area of where the source of the disturbance was a minute ago, he has another spike to work with that would allow him to pinpoint where it is now.

He guessed that he had at least thirty seconds remaining before the reiastu could possibly flare once again. _'Then I can rectify the situation and finally go home to see what Rangiku has done to my division.'_

* * *

"I'm so sorry Kyo! I don't know what happened- I mean I know what happened, but I don't know why and now you're a cat and its all my fault with my clumsiness-"

"It's fine," Kyo interrupted, wriggling free of his clothes and giving a small stretch. "I know it was an accident." He sat down in front of the morose girl, careful not to step on any broken pieces of glass. "I doesn't matter, its not like anyone who doesn't already know saw. Its just Shishou."

"The story of my life young one." Shisou joked, returning with a dustpan and broom to sweep up the shards of glass. "It was only a few glasses, nothing that can't be replaced Honda-san."

Tohru gave a watery smile and nodded, grateful that they weren't upset with her. Taking Kyo in her arms the teen got to her feet and carried the tomcat away from the mess. "So that you don't hurt your feet." The girl explained as she set him down a feet away. She bit her lip, missing Kazuma say something about paws. "Maybe you should head outside while we clean up? Just to be on the safe side."

Kyo softly padded his way outside and sat on the porch overlooking, the small training area that Kazuma allowed his students to use when the weather was permitting. There were training mats hanging over the back fence, Kyo knew from experience that Kazuma has his students dust their mats after a session, their gear was also they're responsibility. He said that it helped build character.

Kyo knows he's just lazy.

He could vaguely hear Tohru speaking with Kazuma, she was obviously enjoying conversing with the older man, if the laugh falling from her lips a moment later was any indication.

'_She has a cute laugh.'_

Kyo violently shook his head. _'Where did that come from?'_

* * *

Still perched in his tree Toshiro continued to scan the area. Luck was on his side today, the period between the flares lasting longer than he expected it to, affording him more time.

His eyes once again land on one particular house – the third time in the last minute alone - there was something about the abode that drew him in. The only difference between now and a few minutes ago was that a small orange cat was now sitting outside. Toshiro watched the animal, there was something peculiar about the feline and it prickled his senses. It made his muscles twitch in a way that was both familiar and foreign.

This cat sets him on edge, it fires his synapses and has him gripping Hyourinmaru's hilt for purchase and quiet reassurance. His knuckles are white with tension and he's certain that Hyourinmaru knows what's going on because there is a comforting rumble in his head that says _'I'm here, don't worry' _and his grip lessens with the security his dragon brings.

He continues to watch the cat for the next few minutes, that worried feeling in his gut never quite leaving him. He breathes a sigh of relief when the cat enters the home a few moments later, but the sound his drowned out by the roar of a hollow. His head snaps to the right, the hollow is a few houses away, steadily making its way towards Toshiro and it only now that the Taicho can feel the vibration of his phone, lost in his moment of…

What _was _that?

Toshiro grips Hyourinmaru once more and is about to launch himself out of the tree when his head shoots to the left.

There it was, that damn flare, coming from that damn house.

* * *

"Just in time Kyo! Any longer and you might have changed outside." Kyo hummed, doing up his belt before pulling his shirt on. A blushing Tohru had banished herself to the kitchen when he had trotted back inside, feeling the transformation wearing off.

It had lasted a bit longer today, he would say between five and ten minutes. He found it harder to keep track of the time when he was a cat; sometimes it felt like hours had passed when it was only minutes. It was easier when there was someone to talk to, he could easily keep the time when he was talking to Tohru or even Yuki. Kyo couldn't tell if it was the same for the others, or if they had a problem different to his own. Maybe it was because cats or nocturnal.

Or maybe it was his urge to nap for the entire day.

Kyo cleared his throat. "It would've been fine, its not like anyone was looking." He shrugged dismissively.

"You never know Kyo." Kazuma's voice was serious. It anyone was to find out about the Zodiac, there was no telling what Akito would do. It was a miracle in itself that Tohru was allowed to keep her memories and still interact with the Sohma family.

"I know, I know. I'll be careful" Kyo placated the older man, rubbing the back of his neck in a bored manor. "Look, I'm just going outside to get that equipment for you."

* * *

Toshiro swung behind the hollow, dodging the fist that had been coming his way moments before. This hollow was tad stronger than the last, nothing he couldn't handle – it'd be embarrassing if he required assistance – but he needed to be careful. This is residential area and it would cause a lot of headaches if there were any damage that couldn't be explained by natural causes.

Keeping an eye on that house was another top priority, it would be disastrous to let the source slip through his fingers, especially with the flares sporadic nature. Who knew when he would get an opportunity like this again?

He moved back as the hollow shifted to face him again, emitting yet another shrill shriek and rocking forward for another strike. Toshiro gave a moment's pause before ducking under the large fist and darting forward, Hourinmaru in hand.

It barely had a chance to blink before the Taicho made contact, the white mask splitting perfectly in two.

He didn't waste time watching the hollow disintegrate behind him, instead making a beeline for the house. He had moved the fight a little bit away from the residence, it wouldn't do for the people inside to be crushed when they are the only ones who can explain what is going on.

He perched himself in the same tree as before, his eyes landing on the house once again.

Only this time instead of seeing an empty yard there was a familiar mop of orange hair being hurried inside by an older gentleman.

Kyo Sohma.

* * *

When he was younger he would call them monsters and he would watch them come in the night. Wondering up and down the streets, shaking the earth with every step they took, and it was as if only he noticed. That he was the only one who woke in the middle of the night, frightened and laone with no one to turn to.

His parents had told him to grow up. There's no such things as monsters, stop making up stories and go to bed. You'll be fine in the morning. He knew that, they didn't come during the day, at least not around here they didn't.

It's not as if it would be hard to believe. The Kaibarra area and more to the point, the Sohma family, were a hive for supernatural activity. His parents had no problem with people turning into the animals of the zodiac when hugged by a person of the opposite gender, that was perfectly normal for the Sohma's. But grotesque creatures that go bump in the night? Absurd.

His only option was to go to the only person who truly cared, his grandfather not withstanding but he never liked the old man anyway. It proved to be the best move he could ever make, he had been soothed by one sentence. One statement.

"_I'll protect you from the monsters."_

It helped him sleep at night, repeating those words like a mantra before bed, his own little prayer. It kept him safe when awoken by their stampeding feet, always turning away at the last second, as if they found a more elusive prey to hunt. And in those moments he knew everything would be fine.

"_I'll protect you from the monsters."_

But moments end, and people leave and the safety nets they provided vanish like some distant daydream that you were never able to catch. You're left there, stranded in the middle of the tightrope of life, and you're feet shake when you take that next perilous step in your journey. Only this time you're alone and scared and _god don't let me fall, please don't let me fall._

Then you take the next step.

And the next.

He still called them monsters when he was teen because you never truly get over a childhood fear. Especially one attached to a traumatic even in your life. He doesn't speak of them, he knew better than that now, speaking of fairytale monsters would get you nowhere.

He learned to ignore them the best he could, merely rolled over in bed when he woke in the dead of night, closing his eyes and blocking out their demonic shrieks as best he could. Feigned sleep till it finally took him away from the nightmarish reality.

By the time he was old enough to have his own children, and he kind of does at this point, he'd learnt to ignore them. Trained his body to disregard that telltale jolt in the night, he knew it so well. He still saw them of course, even during the day now but he wasn't afraid. All he could do was turn away and take those he loved with him, protecting them what they couldn't see nor understand. But that's okay, because he's here now and he'll be their safety net for as long as he is able.

"_I'll protect you from the monsters."_

With that in mind, Kazuma stepped out of his home to usher Kyo back inside, away from that white-faced monster just a few houses away.

* * *

_Mission Status Update._

_After today's incidents, I firmly believe that the Sohma family has a connection to the fluctuating reiastu and that the hollow's are drawn to the occurrance. I have been unable to ascertain what the relationship between the two is yet; I will look into it further in the coming days._

_Awaiting further orders._

_\- Hitsuagay Toshiro_

* * *

**Hey buddies!**

**Another chapter down!**

**I just made up the name for the academy. From Google translator tells me 'Tensai' translates to; genius, prodigy, expert, wonder etc. I figured it kind of fit with the background I gave. Please tell me if there already is a School in Japan called 'Tensai' because I will change it immediately.**

**I realized halfway through this chapter that the way I refer to Uo might get a bit confusing. Sometimes I call her Uo and others I call her Uotani, I want to clear this up. I only call her Uotani when its coming from Toshiro's perspective because he isn't familiar with her, where as when its from Tohru's point of view she would refer to as Uo since they're friends.**

**As for the titles used in Rich Man Poor Man the translations are:**

**Daifugo – The grand millionaire.**

**Fugo – The millionaire.**

**Heimin – The commoner.**

**Hinmin – The needy.**

**Daihinmin – The extreme needy.**

**I really enjoyed writing about Sawako. I hope you guys enjoyed reading about her. **

**My thoughts on Shigure vary; you can't deny that sometimes he is quite off-putting in his thoughts and actions. Especially in the manga, there are times when he's just as manipulative as Akito, even if they have different goals, but it is rather disturbing.**

**The currently world record for most Pi places memorized is 70,000! How on earth does someone do that!? I applaud you good citizen, well done.**

**As always, if anything has offended you in this chapter I apologise, please PM me and I will change it. That is to say, I will change it if it is within reason. **

**Anyway, hope you enjoyed reading!**

**R and R**

**Dragon Shenron**


	5. Found Out

**DISCLAIMER: I DO NOT OWN FRUITS BASKET OR BLEACH, NOR DO I PROFIT FROM THIS STORY.**

**I'm getting better at this updating thing. ****Is what I would say if I actually posted this when I was planning to.**

**I have been dragged into the Miraculous ladybug fandom and I'm not exactly sure how to get out of it, or if I even want to. Those two dorks and their ridiculous love square are ruining my life.**

* * *

_Previously..._

_Mission Status Update._

_After today's incidents, I firmly believe that the Sohma family has a connection to the fluctuating reiastu and that the hollow's are drawn to the occurrence. I have been unable to ascertain what the relationship between the two is yet; I will look into it further in the coming days._

_Awaiting further orders._

_\- Hitsugaya Toshiro_

* * *

**Found Out**

_Hitsugaya Taicho,_

_Find out all you can about the Sohma family, if they are connected to the phenomenon like you say, it is imperative that we find and remedy the problem as soon as possible._

_Report anything of importance regarding your investigation._

_\- Yamamoto Soutaicho._

* * *

_Sixty years ago…_

_The last few months had been interesting to say the least. It wasn't that anything spectacular happened, quite the contrary, it had been perfectly normal. Sawako still attended her classes, Hoshiko and Chiyo by her side causing some sort of chaos, as was the norm for them. The rainy season was right on time forcing students inside the gymnasium for most – if not all – of their recent gym periods. Which of course meant a few rounds of dodge ball, or as her classmates affectionately called it 'stay-the-hell-out-of-Sawako's-way-lest-you-suffer-the-consequences'. Only one student had been sent to the nurse's office so far, but in her defense, if the moron hadn't jumped the ball wouldn't have hit him in the groin. _

_Exams had come and gone – along with most of the student's sanity – leaving some in a pit of despair, others lounging around with indifference and a few patting themselves on the back. Sawako had fallen into the latter much to her parent's pleasure._

_So the days progressed normally, falling into weeks and eventually into months, until it was nearing the end of the spring term. Students were discussing holiday plans; some were going away with family, others planning gaming marathons with people from around the globe, a few smitten teenagers were working up the courage to confess to their crushes hoping holiday luck was on their side. Chiyo was spending the time off with her family, they had a tradition of staying at their grandfathers Onsen for the first week of break. Hoshiko had been scheduled weeks ago to work full time at the family diner her parents owned and would spending the break waiting tables._

_The students excitement was typical, the teachers had more bounce in their step each looking forward to the time off – even if they would spend most of it getting ready for the next term – which was customary for them. The club newsletters had slowed to a trickle until they stopped coming at all. _

_Everything was normal._

_Except it wasn't._

_Not for Sawako._

_Now that's being a bit dramatic but lets face facts, the Sohma's have a flare for the dramatic, no doubt about that. Things were normal, classes were normal, homework was normal and her friends acted the way they always had, the idiot Kurosawa still glared at her if they crossed paths – which turned out to be quite an alarming amount. There was only one change, something so small it should be insignificant, yet it wasn't._

_Hitsugaya._

_He's always there._

_He sits behind her every lesson, even in gym when they're on the bleachers._

_On the odd occasion they both get school lunches they wait beside each other in line. They'd been matched up on cleaning duty after her previous partner changed rooms; he scrubbed the floor while she aired out the erasers. They take the same route home, Hitsugaya always a few steps behind her never faltering in his steps. He's not so close that it appears unseemly, but close enough that she can hear him muttering to himself. Sometimes it's about a particular lesson that day, other times its going over plans for the weekend, often it pure nonsense a slew of mumbles that Sawako can't make out no matter how hard she tries._

_He's at her locker every morning._

"_His locker is next to yours Ko-chan" Chiyo laughs at her when she brings it up one afternoon. "It'd be kind of hard to go to class without supplies. Of course he's going to be there." She rolls her eyes and shrugs. "Not that it'd matter, that guy is too smart for his own good."_

"_Sounds like someone else we know." Hoshiko has always been a bit of a smart ass._

_He's at her locker in the afternoon._

"_Again – you loon-" Chiyo tips her chair backwards and leans on Sawako's desk. "his-" she pokes Sawako on the forehead, "locker" another poke, "is-"._

_Sawako swats her away. "I get your point, but he leaves earlier than I do, he should be gone by the time I get there!"_

"_Irrelevant." Hosiko lazily adds._

_She huffs and crosses her arms staring moodily out the window, only to catch sight of Hitusgaya. He's spending lunch period outside playing a small game of soccer with a few other students._

_She tells them that it's annoying, that's it's weird and they should be comforting her, not laughing goddamn it!_

_But she's lying, because it also kind of makes her day._

_She doesn't mention how warm he feels at her back, that she relaxes just that little bit when he pulls out his chair in the morning and readies himself for the day. She doesn't tell them that whenever they sit on the bleachers he lightly bumps his knees into her back or that it sends a shiver down her spine every time._

_They don't know that they send each other looks out of the corners of their eyes when they wait in line, that they look away when they're caught or that he lets her go first when they reach the counter. They'd have a field day if they knew he paid for her once when she forgot her wallet and she'd be damned if Juro got the last takoyaki roll again._

_She doesn't clue them in, even when it's their turn to clean the room and he always offers to do the floors because it's the worst job or that he has an extra onigiri in his bag that he gives her at the end of the day. He tells her that he buys it at the local corner shop in the few minutes they have to spare before they have to start cleaning. She doesn't tell him that he manages to get a few of her favourites._

_She supposes they'll find out eventually that they walk home the same way; one of them is bound to con their way into a sleep over at her house someday. Until then though, they wont have any idea that she enjoys hearing him talk to himself on the way home, that she looks forward to his quiet musings almost like a narrator at the end of a TV movie. She hates the fork in the road that sends them in different directions, she tries to stop herself looking over her shoulder watching him retreat home._

_She fails. Everytime._

_She doesn't know that he looks at her as well._

_It's not their concern that he greets her with a smile every morning and gives her a quiet "Good morning Sohma-san." She doesn't know when she starts to return his greeting shy smile._

_Or when her stomach became a butterfly enclosure._

_They don't need to know that on that particular afternoon, he catches her eye from all the way down on the field. They don't need to know that he stops to give a small wave and shy smile._

_But they do happen to catch him crumpling to the ground when the soccer ball smacks the side of his head._

_Somehow, the butterflies triple in number after that. The embarrassed smile he sends her when class starts again doesn't help in the slightest._

'_And now its Friday,' Sawako thinks to herself, a little more bounce in her step than usual. The day had been fun; most of the Teachers hadn't even bothered to act like they were going to teach them anything today. It was the last day of term and the students had been allowed to talk among each other for the lessons duration. Sawako spent the day soaking up as much time as possible with Chiyo and Hoshiko before their holiday plans took them their separate ways. _

_Chiyo was probably already home, packing the car with her family. Hoshiko was most likely spread eagle on her bed, lazing around as much as she can before work at the diner beckoned her. _

_Leaving Sawako on her usual walk home, with Hitsugaya's mumblings as her backing track and his even steps as her beat. She sways her hips a little more than usual and steps in time with him so the beat is louder and she knows that at this moment he is watching her, getting lost in their silent dance. _

_They're nearly at the fork in the road when she finally decides to take the bull by the horns. "So," she begins but doesn't turn to look him, stubbornly keeping her gaze a head of them. "When are you going to ask me out?"_

_He falters and their dance comes to an abrupt end. Sawako takes a few more steps before coming to a stop and finally turning to look at the boy behind her. He's hunched over, hands on his knees and shoulder bag slowly falling down his arm until it lands with a dull thump beside him. His eyes are wide as he looks at her, Sawako gives herself a mental pat on the back for making a boy speechless._

_He straightens a few moments later and scratches the back of his neck, a blush spreading across his cheeks. "I- uhm, well I was – ah- planning on-" He starts, his usual eloquence missing in actions._

_ has stopped working._

_He stops to clear his throat and his eyes flicker back and forth between Sawako and the sidewalk. He sighs and runs his hand through his hair before starting again. "You see I'm a bit nervous, I've been planning on asking out this girl I like for awhile now, but I've always chickened out because I'm worried she wont say yes." He admits with a blush._

_Sawako smiles and takes a small step toward him. "So this girl you like, does she likes you back?" _

_He shrugs. "I hope so. I mean, it seems like it but I'm not the best at reading people." He laughs nervously, his eyes scrunching up in an adorable manner._

"_That's obvious if you don't think I'll accept." She smiles and bounces on the balls of her feet. "Which I totally will by the way."_

_He doesn't laugh or take her in his arms immediately as some others might have. He only gives her shy smile, stuffing his hands in his pockets for a moment – most likely suppressing some sort of mini celebration – his eyes expressing his relief. They're silent for a moment taking each other in before he speaks again. "Can I see you tomorrow Sohma-san? We could see a movie, or go to the festival in town?" Despite knowing that she wont turn him down, Hitsugaya still sounds nervous. _

"_I'd like that." She smiles. "But if we're going to do this, it's Sawako-chan not Sohma-san." She bends at the waist and shakes her finger at him, as if that will emphasize her point. When he finally laughs she straightens. "If that's okay with you…Kouhei-kun?"_

"_It's more than okay Ko-chan."_

"_Don't call me that ridiculous nickname!"_

* * *

When a Shinigami is sent on a mission to the world of the living, it is not unusual for said reaper to live off instant meals. Ramen was a favourite, along with take away sushi, an easy meal that doesn't require any effort. If the Shinigami was lucky and their commanding officer forked out enough money they would get housing that had an oven, further opening up the meal market. This seldom happened as most missions were over in a few days or a week at most, so it was a seen as a waste of money providing such accommodation.

The last Shinigami to receive this treatment was Rukia, and she didn't even use it. Deciding that the closet of a fifteen-year-old boy served her much better during the time of her mission. The apartment went unused for months and had collected so much dust that the landlord issued a cleaning bill to the registered name – one Urahara Kisuke - who dutifully forwarded the notice to Ukitake. Who in turn had to explain the sudden dip in the Jusanbantai's expense account to the Soutaicho.

So when Toshiro and his team had been deployed in Karakura Town, they hadn't been given any lodgings _at all. _Evidently the crisis had come one so quickly there hadn't been anytime to find suitable accommodation, and therefore they were on their own. It had nothing to do with the fact the Soutaicho could hold a grudge, none what so ever.

Toshiro didn't think much of it; much of his youth had been spent on the streets, in West Rukongai no less. Compared to that the few weeks spent in Karakura would be a walk in the park. Rangiku and Renji had felt the same, both spending a fair amount of time fighting for survival in their own parts of Rukongai, finding new friends along the way. It had been pure luck that they all managed to find a place live during their time there.

This time around though Toshiro didn't have to find housing for himself and had instead been given a fitting apartment. Not too fancy but not unlivable either.

And so it's times like these, standing in the middle of the fresh food section of the supermarket, that he's glad Granny taught him how to cook. He isn't limited to microwavable dinners or instant ramen as some of his colleagues are, and he's not too bad at it so the food is at least edible.

Unlike Rangiku's.

He shivers; that grilled salmon topped with custard and soy sauce would forever haunt his dreams. Toshiro shakes his head and places the cabbage in his basket, picking out a few more ingredients for his okonomiyaki tonight before heading over to the fresh meat counter. He takes a ticket stub with the number thirty-seven printed on it and inspects the pork for a suitable cut while he waits to be served.

"Do you need some help little lady?" Toshiro rolls his eyes at the lame excise of a pick-up line. He can see the reflection a man behind in the glass of the case, he's an older man maybe in his late thirties and obviously desperate if he uses a grocery store to 'pull' women. He can't see the woman he's talking to, his own reflection blocking her from his view. Admittedly Toshiro doesn't have much experience when it comes to dating, most of his time is spent at the office meeting deadlines for paper work and generally keeping Rangiku from destroying the division. He'd been on a few dates back at the academy and had a partner or two before he graduated, so he knew that his flirting wasn't too bad, at least not as bad as this man.

The woman replies so quietly that Toshiro can't make it out but the mans reaction makes it clear as day. "Oh come on!" Toshiro sees the man lean forward and attempt to take something from the woman who he still can't see. "That basket looks heavy, I'd be happy to carry it for you." The man is now looming over the woman and Toshiro can hear a few of the other customer's whispering to each other about the display, wondering if they should intervene.

Toshiro closes his eyes and sighs, feeling just as conflicted. If there was one thing his time in the Soul Society taught him, it's that women can take care of themselves and they don't need a white knight coming to save the day. That's not to say the gesture isn't appreciated, Rangiku tells him as much when he comes to her aid on and off the battlefield.

"_I'm a big girl Taicho. I'm more than capable of handling myself." She tells him one night when he retrieves her from a bar outside the Seireitei. When he arrived – to drag her back to the office to finish her paperwork – she was surrounded by a hoard of men, each cat calling her in a vulgar manner. Her usual posse was passed out at their table and was of no use. Toshiro had immediately moved forward negotiating the mass of people until he standing in front of his Fukutaicho, he'd taken her hand in his and proceeded to pull her out of the huddle and eventually outside, the men too drunk to notice her absence. "You don't need to save me every time," Rangiku told him as he walks her home having decided she was in no shape to complete paperwork, it would be no use if they handed in gibberish._

_When they do reach her home Rangiku leans down and kisses him on the cheek. "I appreciate it though." She whispers. "Thank you for coming to get me Taicho."_

With that in mind Toshiro keeps his eyes forward, determined to stay out of it lest the situation escalated and became his problem. He sees the man reach forward, still looming over the woman, and attempt to grab the basket from hr. "It's no problem, it'd be fun! We could talk, maybe exchange numbers, what do you say?" He really didn't know when to stop does he?

"I'm fine, thank you though! I can manage on my own."

And now it's his problem.

Because he knows that voice, and damn that's not a woman it's a seventeen-year-old girl and that man needs to stop right now.

Toshiro turns around his gaze falling on Tohru as she politely turns the man down yet again. She uses the basket as a buffer, holding it close to her person as she takes a hesitant step back, nearly knocking over a stand of soup but luckily only jostles a few of the cans. The man laughs. "See! You can't even walk properly. Just let me help you and then we can have some fun." He winks at her. The customers are openly staring now, a few even getting out their phones to record the scene.

Torhu blanches at the thought and that's when Toshiro makes his move.

Toshiro strides toward the pair and plants himself in front of Tohru who gasps at the sight of him. "I think she's managing just fine on her own." To an outsider the sight must be amusing; Toshiro is at least a head shorter than the other man and is even shorter than Tohru, and yet he stands there with such confidence that no one dares move him. Toshiro reaches back and gently nudges Tohru - an act that everybody missed - signaling that she should move away. Thankfully she gets the message.

The man stares down at him for a second and rolls his eyes, a derisive sound escaping his lips. "Look kiddo," Either the man doesn't hear Toshiro click his tongue at the title or he chose to ignore it, "I'm not sure what you think you're doing but I was talking to this nice lady," He obviously hasn't noticed that Tohru had put a considerable amount of distance between herself and the pair after Toshiro arrived. "And you're kinda killing the vibe. So I'm just gonna need you to," he makes a shooing motion with his hands, "move along."

Toshiro cocks his eyebrow. "If you were going for a an 'overly desperate and creepy vibe' you certainly achieved it."

"How dare-" The man flares his nostrils and turns red.

"I wouldn't finish that sentence if I were you." Toshiro says flippantly, a bored look on his face that only served to anger the man more. He clenches his fist and raises it so that Toshiro could see it, a threat that Toshiro wasn't overly concerned with. It's only when the overhead lights glint over his finger that the mans status becomes apparent.

"What do you mean by that?" Comes the snarled response.

"Well," Toshiro continues with an air of indifference, "_I'm _not the one who hit on a teenage girl. I certainly didn't choose to do so at a supermarket of all places, where everyone would see my get turned down over three times under a minute and," Toshiro points to gold banded wedding ring. "I didn't do all that while married." Toshiro shakes his head in pity. "No, that would be much too humiliating. Honestly, I think I would die of embarrassment."

The man breaks when the gathered people snicker. He pulls his fist back and lurches forward using his body as momentum to put more strength behind the hit. Toshiro merely sidesteps the man and watches as he looses his footing and tumbles the ground, landing on his shoulder and sliding a few feet before coming to a stop in front of the delicatessen.

The only thing heard is the man's heavy breathing, nobody saying a word before Toshiro repeats himself.

"Honestly, how humiliating."

* * *

"What are you doing here?" Kyo asks, irritated at the two standing at his doorstep. He already has that idiot dog to deal with as well as Haru and Momiji who have overtaken their kitchen. His only saving grace is that Yuki is at a Student Council meeting and out of the house.

"Hello to you too Kyo." Hiro huffs and pushes his way past the grumbling teenager, Kisa close at his heels. It had been a few weeks since the pair had last visited and the first time since Tohru's near miss not too long ago, much to Kisa's displeasure. It had been hard enough for Hiro to calm her down when they first heard, let alone when her mother forbade her from seeing Tohru until her exam period was over.

Although Hiro has grown to like Tohru more than he used to, he didn't see the point in making a fuss over what happened, at least not as much as the other Sohma's were making. The car didn't hit her, it was a near miss and thanks to a bystander Tohru had come out with only some minor bruising. The same amount you would get if you fell off your bike or jumped off the swings too late, nothing to worry about. Yet here he is, seated at a kotatsu, with Kisa at his side and across from that damn dog that never failed to get on his nerves.

"Now Kyo, that's not how we greet our guests is it?" Shigure scolds from behind his newspaper. "Aren't you supposed to be studying? That is why you didn't help Tohru with the shopping isn't it?"

"Sissy's not here?" Kisa asks quietly, sounding dejected.

Shigure puts the newspaper down and finally greets them. "I'd afraid not. Our dear Tohru has ventured out into the unknown, alone and defenseless, and for what?" Shigure leans back on his hand and pats his stomach. "So that we may fill our empty tummies with her famous tempura." His mouth waters at the mere thought and his gathered audience finds the sight ridiculous. "But alas! She's been gone for so long I fear I may die of hunger. Its so dark now that all the distasteful people are coming out of the shadows."

"The sun hasn't even set old man." Kyo growls as he walks away from the trio and up the stairs to the second landing.

In a last ditch effort to annoy the cat Shigure, ever the show pony, throws his head back, one hand cushioned on his forehead and other supporting his weight behind him. "Dear Tohru! Please be safe, we cannot survive without you. I fear that if you leave us," he pretends that his arm gives out under his weight and crumples to the floor. "One of our hearts will give its final _purr_" He lets out a wail. "And then beat no more!"

Kyo slams his door shut and dust falls from the roof.

Shigure snickers.

"Is Sissy in trouble?" Kisa asks worriedly. Let it be known that picking up on sarcasm is not one of her strong points and is something that people have exploited on many occasions.

Shigure sits up with a laugh and lays his head on the kotatsu, his arms stretched out in front of him. "She's perfectly alright, our Tohru is a big girl so she doesn't need a chaperone to go shopping." He pats kisa's hand and wise chose to keep his distance from Hiro. "I just like to rile that cat up. It's so easy!"

"Something that you always take advantage of." Haru comments as he emerges from the kitchen, Momiji not far behind. "You've annoyed him so much today that he's stormed out of the room six times already."

Shigure flicks his hair. "It's a gift. Don't worry; I know you're jealous."

Hiro pinches his nose and wonders how on earth he's related to any of these people.

* * *

"Thank you, for what you did." Tohru says when they exit the store about half an hour after what the staff is calling The Incident. Tohru had been a little shaken by the ordeal and Toshiro offered to finish their shopping together, Tohru had eagerly accepted. "I'm not sure what I would've done if he kept going."

Toshiro shrugs his shoulders. "You shouldn't have to worry about things like that. He had no right to act the way he did and should be ashamed of himself."

A blush spreads across Tohru's face at his kinds words. "Usually Yuki or Kyo are with me, so people tend to leave me alone. Today is the first time I've come alone because Yuki is busy with the Student Council and Kyo needs to study." Toshiro cocks his brow, why would those two help her with shopping? From the amount of ingredients she picked out it's clear that she's cooking for her family tonight, so why would those two have anything to do with it? Is the Honda family close to the Sohma's or related in some way? Maybe they're neighbours, he has seen the three students walk the same direction after the school day ends, and they do arrive at the same time. But that was unlikely, in his observations of the Sohma family he found that they owned a small house in the rural area of Kaibara and the land surrounding it. The next property was a good kilometer away. So the boy's either went quite a bit out of their way to make sure Tohru got home safe or-

"Do you live with the Sohma's?" Toshiro curiously asks causing Tohru to falter and drop one of her shopping bags, a few daikon rolling out when it hit the ground. Toshiro immediately drops to his knees and packs the bag, idly noticing that Tohru had yet to move from her position. Most likely too surprised and maybe a little frightened to be of any assistance. Once the final daikon is back in its place Toshiro rights himself and holds the bag out to Tohru, who is doing a remarkable impression of a fish with the way her mouth opens and closes as she tries to think of what to say. Toshiro sighs when she still doesn't manage to get anything out a few seconds later. "You don't have to answer if it makes you uncomfortable."

Tohru shakes her head and takes the offered bag. "N-no, it's not that. You just surprised me; you're the first person to figure it out on your own." She shuffles her feet awkwardly. "If people at school found out, I don't know what would happen. The Prince Yuki Fan Club" Toshiro had to roll his eyes at that, that particular club had already caught his attention once or twice now with their ridiculous displays. "-definitely wouldn't like it. They've already threatened me about staying away from Yuki. I hate to think what they would do if they found we live in the same house." She sighs and twists the handles of the grocery bag. "It's not as if I don't have anywhere else to go. Grandfather would definitely let me stay with him, but my aunt and uncle live there as well and they're not the nicest people. They-" She cuts herself off, not sure how to continue without blurting out the whole story. Toshiro didn't need to know about any of that, it's much too personal to lay it on someone else, especially one who helped her so much already. She smiles a little and bounces on the balls of her feet, trying to perk herself up a little bit. "It's alright though, you-"

"Your reasons for being there are just that, your own." Toshiro interrupts her, his voice steady and sure. "You don't have to explain them to me or to anyone else for that matter. If they cant deal with it, it's their problem, not yours." He knows that better than anyone. After so many years living on the streets he was hesitant to believe that anyone would offer him a place to rest, let alone a family to join. It had been pure luck that Granny had taken him into her home and into her heart. A privileged position that he holds dear to this day. "You need to be where you feel comfortable and secure and if that's away from your family, so be it. I'm not going to judge you for your decisions."

Tohru doesn't say anything for a few moments, too surprised by his reaction to respond immediately. "Thank you, that means a lot."

"Don't mention it." The sky was starting to darken as the sun set for the day. Toshiro frowns. "If it's alright with you, I'd like to walk you home. It's getting late and I don't think you should walk home alone."

* * *

It doesn't take very long for them to reach the house, maybe a twenty-minute walk from the store. Tohru spends the time regaling Toshiro with stories of the Sohma's and her friends. For being such soft and mild mannered girl, she sure has some lively people in her life. She had just finished telling Toshiro about the time she mistook Ritsu Sohma as woman because of his habit of dressing in woman's clothes. Apparently the different dress would help calm his nerves and make him appear less anxious. Toshiro had never heard of such a technique, but to each there own. If it worked for him, Toshiro wasn't going to say anything about it.

Tohru was half way through the tale of the trip to the family hot springs when a house came into view. It isn't as modern as some of the other houses in Kaibara, in fact it looked like some of the homes found in the Soul Society.

The feeling of homesickness is as surprising as it is unwanted.

"Here we are." Tohru says happily. She enjoyed the walk home, even if Toshiro hadn't contributed much to the conversation, only offering his opinion every so often, even if it was a simple 'yes' or 'no'. "Thank you for walking me home." She does a little bow but Toshiro waves it off, saying that it wasn't a problem. "Would you like to come inside? I can get you some water if you like?"

"I'm fine thank you." He checks the time on his phone; tis nearly time to hand his update to Yamamoto. Right now would be a perfect opportunity to observe the Sohma's and maybe catch them in whatever they're doing to affect the town's reiatsu, but its unlikely they would do anything if he were inside the residence. He needs to leave now if he wants to gather any Intel before his next report is due. "I should get going before it gets too late."

Tohru hesitates before nodding her head. "If you're sure-"

"Sissy!" Tohru is interrupted when the front door opens with a bang and girl flies into Tohru's arms. The pair would have tumbled to the ground had Toshiro not braced them with his arm. The girl seems to take no notice of this. "I'm so glad you're back!" She laughs and buries her face in Tohru's chest. "Hiro and I would have come to visit earlier but we had exams-"

Toshiro tunes out the girls conversation and instead focuses on house and the surrounding land, trying to find a good vantage point. Even though he would be coming back without his gigai it never hurt to hide yourself away incase someone could see you and he definitely wasn't taking any chances with the Sohma's. If they can affect reiatsu the way they have been there is no telling how in tune they are with the spiritual world. The dirt road that overlooked the house looked promising; with its lack of erosion and overgrown vegetation it's obvious that it isn't used often. The chances of him being spotted there are very slim. He should be able to gather more information about the Sohma's if he doubles back after he leaves and stakes out the house. Someone was bound to screw up eventually.

He distantly acknowledges that a few more people have come outside and are now watching the spectacle the two girls are making. They don't pay him any mind because since he s hidden behind Tohru and the unnamed girl. He is brought back into the conversation when Tohru mentions his name.

"Would you like to meet him? He's right here."Ahh, they must have been speaking about car mishap from before. Tohru steps to the side and suddenly all eyes are on him. "Kisa, this is Hitsugaya Toshiro."

It's not exactly a good feeling when people stare at you; its invasive and often distressing, but he's grown used to it.

He's used to their gawking expressions.

He's grown accustomed to the panic in their eyes when they take in his appearance.

He's learned that people often run away from what they don't' understand or like.

He knows that when it comes to him, its not 'fight or flight' its 'flight and flight some more and hey why aren't you running yet?'

So he knows what's going to happen next.

_In three…two…one…_

Kisa bolts.

_Lift off._

A brown haired boy around her age takes off after her, calling her name as they disappear beyond the trees. The wide birth he gives Toshiro when he passes by him doesn't escape anyone's notice.

Silence descends upon the rest of the group, some of them too embarrassed to speak or shocked in Tohru's case. Shigure, who only just seemed to get over seeing Toshiro in the flesh, speaks up. "Well, that was a shock. Such an odd girl that one." He steps forward and introduces himself with a bow. "I'm Sohma Shigure, it's a pleasure to finally meet the boy who saved Tohru. Please don't pay Kisa or Hiro any mind, they're a tad peculiar."

"I-I don't know why they did that." Tohru stutters from beside him, still looking in the direction the two took off in. "They're never like that. I'm sorry."

Toshiro waves it away. "It's not the first time, and I doubt it'll be the last." He doesn't wait from them to respond, being pitied is his least favourite pass time. It's listed just under spending the afternoon Aizen and Ichimaru. "As I said before, I must be going." He nods his head at Shigure and Tohru before turning around and making his way down the path. He acknowledges their faint 'good byes' with a slight wave over his shoulder.

* * *

Kyo waited until Toshiro disappeared behind the tree line before making his way down stairs. He decided as soon as he saw the white haired boy walking Tohru to the front door that he would keep his distance. With Hiro and Kisa here there were bound to be fireworks when they recognized the boy walking with Tohru. There was no way her was going to be in the fall out zone. Nope. He was staying right here.

It was hardly a minute later that he saw Kisa make a break for it, Hiro taking off not a second later, calling her name as they tore down the trail leading back to town.

"Are you sure you're alright?" He hears Shigure ask Tohru as he comes down from his room.

"I'm fine, honestly. Hitsugaya-san took care of it, so there's nothing to worry about." Tohru said embarrassedly, holding her hands out in a placating manner, hoping it would calm down the three zodiac members.

"Took care of what?" Kyo asks curiously as he pads down the last step and up to the group.

Momiji whips around to face Kyo, his eyes wild and his nostrils flared. "Tohru was accosted by a man at the grocery store! Toshiro had to step in so that he would stop!" The blonde haired boy begins to pace out of anger, a huff escaping his lips every so often. He and Shigure grumble together, the older man having retreated to the kotatsu after Kyo came down. Haru wanders back to the kitchen mumbling something along the lines of 'sharpening the knives'.

Kyo takes no notice of this, his sole focus on Tohru. He should have been there. If he or Yuki had been there, nothing would have happened, the man wouldn't dare approach Tohru if someone accompanied her. Kyo had been ready to go with her, but she insisted he stay home, saying that his time was better spent studying rather than going into town with her just for a few groceries. She got that stubborn look on his face that promised he would not win if her chose to argue with her. For being such a kind-hearted girl she could be remarkably headstrong, especially when it came to schoolwork. He had reluctantly agreed.

And now he wishes he hadn't. Because even now, coming off what would be quite a traumatic event, she is trying to comfort him.

"-nothing to worry about! Hitsugaya-san took care of it before it got out of hand." Tohru stops herself, thinking about her next words very carefully. "I'm sure you would've done the same-"

"Where's the food?" He interrupts her; he doesn't want to hear her reassure him. It would only make things worse.

"Oh! I put the bags down when Kisa came out, I guess I forgot about them." Tohru rubs the back of her neck in a sheepish manner and holds her hands out in apology. "I'll go get them now." Kyo Shakes his head and stops her before she can make a move. He gently places his hand on her shoulder and gives a light squeeze.

"Don't worry about it." He moves past her and makes his way outside stopping a few feet shy of bags.

She could've been hurt.

She could've been taken away. Kidnapped.

Alone.

Frightened.

'_She could've been-' _Kyo cuts himself off with a sharp knock to the head, his hand eventually seetling in his hair. He grips the strand tightly and squats down and he allows a few tears of frustration escape him. Can't he protect anyone? His mother left when he so young, buried in front of family and friends who abandoned him, even his own father. If he can't even protect his friends, what use is he? He has yet to defeat that damn rat and the dead line is growing closer and closer. It's weighing him down and the load grows heavier by the day.

He tugs on his hair harshly, a growl escaping his lips.

"Kyo-kun? Are you okay?" Kyo whirls around and stands at his full height. Tohru is standing behind him, arms crossed over her front and her shoe is toeing the ground. Tracing imaginary patterns in the dirt. Kyo blinks and wonders how she snuck up on him. Tohru starts again when he fails to respond. "Are you mad about what happened? I know I should've been more careful but-"

Oh for the love of god.

She thinks he's angry with her?

Kyo resists the urge to slap his forehead; this girl is so oblivious it's almost painful.

He steps forward and without a thought, gathers Torhu up in his arms. He can feel the telltale tingling in his chest that always rears it head when he transforms. He brings his arms up around her and hugs her close to his chest, she tucks rather nicely under his chin. Before he finally gives out he manages to whisper a few words to her.

"I'm so happy that you're okay."

* * *

For having him up against the ropes for so long, Toshiro didn't think they would screw up so quickly or in such a spectacular fashion.

He didn't think much of it when Kyo emerged from the house a few minutes after his departure, or when the boy appeared to have a minor break down. He chalked it up to teenage hormones and left it at that, looking on disinterestedly as Kyo went though the motions. Tohru came out a few moments later, no doubt to fetch the boy and possibly bring the bags inside so she could start dinner.

So at that point, nothing noteworthy had happened, unless the Soutaicho had a particular interest in teenage angst.

No, the screw up came next.

And boy was it big one.

He felt it when Kyo stepped towards Tohru and gathered her in his arms.

That spike that eluded him for so long, that was causing the Souls Society so many problems.

And it came from a hug between a boy and a girl.

Like the times before it, this spike only lasted a second before it disappeared again.

And curiously, so did Kyo. In a puff of orange smoke that for a moment blocked the pair from his sight. It was only when the smoke dissipated a few seconds later that Toshiro knew that Kyo hadn't actually disappeared.

Tohru was seated on the ground and in front of her sat a very familiar orange cat; nestled atop the clothes Kyo had been wearing not a second before.

Perhaps a call to the Soutaicho will be more beneficial than a written report this time around.

* * *

**Hello people!**

**Hope you enjoyed this chapter! The plot is going to start taking off soon and I'm really excited about that.**

**I never realized how much fun it is creating your own characters and then fleshing them out on paper. It's incredibly fun writing about Kouhei and Sawako so I hope you like reading about them!**

**I don't think the cliffhanger is that bad, I mean its not like I stopped it before he saw Kyo transform.**

**I'll see you when I upload the next chapter!**

**R and R**

**DragonShenron**


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